The Lord and the Feisty Lady
by JeffC FTW
Summary: Young author and college student Kim Possible saves the world and writes about her adventures, but she's about to embark on the biggest journey of her lifetime when dashing explorer Lord Montgomery Fiske contacts her regarding four mysterious monkey statues - and sweeps her off her feet. A retelling of "Monkey Fist Strikes".
1. Unanswered Prayers

**A somewhat retelling of "Monkey Fist Strikes" and maybe the rest of the adventures, I bring you yet another Kim Possible/Monty Fiske tale. :D I was inspired by various Harlequin romances as well as the epic romance "Romancing the Stone" to bring this to life. In this story, Kim Possible is in college and a young writer who is always inspired by her adventures to do a great story for the world. Her life takes a far more interesting turn when her longtime idol, respected archaeologist Lord Monty Fiske, calls for her aid regarding the four jade monkey idols. Expect some twists and turns along the way. ;D There are also elements of the original show as well as the movie "So the Drama". :D Not completely the same, but similar enough.**

 **Disclaimer: I do NOT own Kim Possible or the characters, nor do I own any of the elements of "Romancing the Stone" or any known romance books. At the beginning is the ending line of one of my favorites, "The Horseman's Bride" by Elizabeth Lane (mentions of the book itself present).**

Chapter One

Unanswered Prayers

 _"Everything was as it should be. They stood together on the threshold of a new life, surrounded by love..."_

The words breathed harshly aloud through her lips as she reclined back on the black leather lounge of the apartment she shared with one of her best friends since high school.

This was her third time reading this book, and it still grasped her at every turn. Uncle Slim had to amuse her by sending her this copy he'd gotten Joss for her birthday - now two girls had the same novel - and it was a hell of a read. Wild western romance involving a man on the run and coming across a young woman whose dream was to raise horses. Spicy, forbidden - but oh, so right. Her body thrummed each time she picked this thing up; even her roommate could not stop her share of sweltering with relating to the leading ladies of these books.

She and Monique had their shared shelf dominating an entire wall that it would be tacky in another's eyes, but there was no such thing as too much passion in text. Kim Possible had to admit that those relationships were also inspiration for what she put down in her own paper - then boom, combined with action and her latest real life adventures, it was a bestseller in the _New York Times._

Adventures including Dr. Drakken, whom she had not seen or heard from since her high school days. Who knew where he and Shego were now, since they laid low following the last attempted takeover - and the damages done to Bueno Nacho, all of which made an epic tale. Several occasions she recalled from those days from the beginning when she acquired the nanotick, then the cheese factory in Wisconsin, as well as Rufus getting smart after an accident with the latest brain-wave machine - dare she repeat anything else world-threatening that led up to the pivotal moment which was Bueno Nacho as the command center, her father's cybertronic technology in Mr. Nakasumi's stolen character, as well as a false boyfriend who turned out to be one of Drakken's synthodrone bots under the guise of "Eric" - and therefore destroyed Kim's self-confidence and hopes of having a special someone in her life.

Who'd have thought that a false romance would end up skyrocketing the lists of what was best in her book - and who'd have thought that the heroine of the pages would end up falling in love with her lifelong friend and partner in the grand finish?

Kim sighed when she thought of Ron, her best friend since kindergarten. He had gone for a football scholarship but also to become a future chef; cooking was his talent much better than hers ever would be. It had been his idea to have the female lead to eventually marry her best friend and eventual lover in the epilogue - when it was the opposite of their own situation. There had been no more guys for Kim after the thing with Eric. She'd been so close to having someone in her life, but that prom had been the end of it for her.

Some tiny part of her thought she would die old and alone now.

She tried to tell herself with Monique's help that she was strong and independent; she was a role model for the girls worldwide, and did not need a boy, or man for that matter. But looking around those important and dear to her - Monique with Brick after he and Bonnie broke up after graduation, Ron with Tara after she dumped her own high school boyfriend - she felt like she was the only one left.

Yet that did not stop her from continuing to dream, escape reality as it was.

Kim closed the book and rested it in her lap, looked up at the ceiling while she relaxed in her flimsy yellow top and blue shorts. She made a decent wage on her last book, her first one, but she was stuck on ideas for a new one. She had no classes today, and Monique was at work today. Ron was at practice, and Tara was away helping her sick mother. Basically, Kim had the day to herself and was bored out of it. There left one thing to do.

Pulling up the Kimmunicator, she searched the favorites and found what she was looking for. The Knowing Channel had all her favorites regarding endangered species and ancient historical treasures uncovered, but there was one in particular that stood out from the rest. When she hit the PLAY button, a pair of sharp blues and a cultured accent washed her senses as it began to speak of the chimpanzee, within West Africa where its home was often the target of greedy poachers and rich folk looking for a private performance or whatever motivations. It broke her heart to know that the babies were always taken from their mothers to be made as pets. Oh, and don't get her started on Ebola.

 _"...physiologically, the chimpanzee is very much like us in terms of socialism, sharing ninety-eight percent genes with us, and even caring for their young as we humans are ferocious for,"_ the man on the screen was explaining as he knelt before a female chimp nurturing her young, the lucky of the lot to not end up ensnared in a trap, having come down from her hiding place in a tree, dry to her preference like the others of her race. He chuckled as the mother reached up and tried to pull at his shirt collar, playfully swatting it away with a gloved hand before passing a banana to her so she could feed herself and the baby. He cleared his throat then and returned his attention to the camera. _"And of course, they're gentle creatures as they can be - as long as they are not provoked,"_ he said with now a serious glint in his eyes.

He continued to speak that they would live up to fifty years old, even though humans would live longer than that. _"These magnificent beasts are the most misunderstood of all nature's creatures, even though Darwin strongly believes we descended from simians. Their homes are often taken down and the chimps themselves are left for sporting, captured often for private collections."_ His lips, set in a strong jaw, curled with obvious disgust. He really loved these guys so much that it sickened him to know that such people around the world would do this to them as well as gorillas. _"Unfortunately, too few national parks global wide can preserve the ape population and only in under ten countries. As a direct result, the chimpanzee population has diminished in four known countries. If this poaching sin isn't brought to an end in the near future, our distinct simian relatives will vanish from the face of the earth - or if not illegal trade, then the fatal Ebola will do the trick."_

In so many ways, this man was like her: passionate, dedicated, and willing to do a good cause to save endangered lives even if these weren't human. But like he said, the chimpanzee was similar to them. A life was a life. The name of this man, powerful and influential, was a part of her life even though she did not know him personally, and he was her inspiration: Lord Montgomery Fiske.

Lord Fiske was a world-famous explorer and highly respected English scholar. He was notorious as the leading expert in all things simian, discovered many exotic relics that no other succeeded to find. It was like he was a man who could do _anything._

Just like Kim Possible could do _anything._

Now there was a flash from his playful comforting of the mother chimp and her young, leaving the explorer himself seated somewhere in the shade while he answered a few questions regarding the well-being of the chimpanzees throughout West and Central Africa, and he responded with a confident, charming smile upon his face.

 _"The British government has taken great part in ensuring that there be ceasing of poaching, even if the quest will not be completed overnight."_ He waved a hand once more, this time for emphasis. _"Of course, it takes more than enough power to carry this out - but what is one man to do this on his own?"_

Kim briefly closed her eyes as she felt the question strike her to her core. She was only barely thirteen when she began saving the world, starting with Mr. Paisley and his protection of the rarest Cuddle Buddy; if anyone knew she still had Pandaroo, her life would be a laughing stock. At least Bonnie moved to Lowerton following graduation, so no more of her. But all of that was beside the point; Lord Monty Fiske dared to ask what one person could do to save the world. He must have heard about her, known her as a great example of making an impact, so how could he ask such a thing of himself?

An idiot would think he had no real confidence in himself and was doing his best to hide it - but an older, wiser person would look into his eyes and see it all. The eyes were the windows to the soul, and there she glimpsed wisdom, knowledge and passion...drowning her and causing her heart to thunder...

"KIM!"

She shrieked and nearly dropped the Kimmunicator. "Ron! You scared the life out of me!"

He had to come in through the window which she always left unlocked and he knew it. "Hey, hey, sorry about that." He stood up and dusted himself off with both hands. It was an old habit that hadn't grown out of him yet. "I finished practice early and thought I'd stop by."

"Your timing couldn't have been better." She had to pause the documentary in its place and set the Kimmunicator down on the table. Having heard certain words while it was still playing, Ron's chocolate eyes bulged, and his hands shot to his ears.

"Agh! Monkeys! KP, why do you have to watch something with monkeys?!"

"Ron! Lord Fiske's insights as well as his discoveries and passion to preserve the natural habitats are extremely insightful," Kim argued. Even when they were still in high school, no amount of showing the documentaries and findings of the British nobleman could have eased Ron's long-lived monkey phobia. Some things never changed. "He's been an idol of mine since -"

He interrupted her with both hands raised. "Yeah, yeah, the world-class explorer, every girl's dream," he said sarcastically, shaking his head. "Blah, blah, blah blah. I don't know what you see in him, Kim. His Lordship, for all I know, is bad road. Five hundred miles of it."

Groaning, Kim let herself fall back onto the couch. "Ron, I thought we were over all of this a long time ago. Did you come all this way to spend the rest of the day with me or to fight with me?" she asked.

"No." He sighed and sat down beside her. Rufus happily jumped out of his pocket but then became sad when he looked between his master and her. "Tara's mom is still sick. I wish I was there with her."

"Well, if your mom was stricken, she'd understand you."

"True. But what about you? Any ideas of a new book yet?"

Now it was her turn to sigh. "No, but I just finished _The Horseman's Bride_ for the third time. Still hits the spot," she told him with a wink. "Wild western adventure and romance, the thrill of forbidden love ending happily..."

His face lit up. "Just like Kathryn and Richard in your book," he pointed out, and then her insides melted - but not completely in the positive way. Seeing the look on her face made him reel back, and Rufus exclaimed "Uh, oh!" while slapping his paw over his eyes.

"KP, I'm sorry."

"Don't," she said, raising her hand to him before letting it fall back to her lap. "Still no men for me. And no amount of fictional romance - historical, fantasy, or even real - is going to have someone dashing ride my way. Another unanswered prayer of mine."

She had to lean forward and put her face into her hands, and Ron's hands on her shoulders comforted her. The naked mole rat tried not to sniffle and failed. "Hey, don't beat yourself up. The day will come; you'll see."

 **I did my research on chimpanzees, as they are among the most common endangered species in the globe. Everything that Lord Fiske speaks of in his features was based on the article on chimpanzees on the website World Wild Life. Let's see where this adventure goes - and when it will begin. Stay tuned!**


	2. The Call

**Since we never directly SEE the entirety of the documentary Kim has mentioned seeing of the world-famous explorer, I figured now was the time, and it was a fun challenge. :) I hadn't even been able to find other fics that showed it happening, but my research on chimps helped.**

 **As you saw in the last chapter, he's a dedicated, passionate man, and a little more admirable - so some changes are made to him apart from the original show, but otherwise kept in character.**

 **Where he finds one of the jade monkeys this time around includes real facts, as always.**

Chapter Two

The Call

This was not the first time Lord Monty Fiske personally recovered a priceless simian artifact across the globe, nor would it be the last.

In addition, this was not the only one of its kind in existence.

The second jade monkey statue was recovered with his own hands from the Indian jungle of Arunachal Pradesh - the Orchid State of India, as it was in Sanskrit. It was said to be a botanical paradise, enriched with diversity, and truer words had never been spoken. But within the "dawn-lit" mountains was where he uncovered the location of what he found that he spent a lifetime searching for because his dear mother had long since carried the secret of their family since before his birth. Think about it as a life's pursuit.

In addition, how fascinating and ironic that this place was mentioned in Hindu texts that it was the very region bearing marked history from when a king built his kingdom, a lord married his lady, and a sage cleansed away sins while another sought peace and harmony. So much historical context, and such wonderment if there would be any more monasteries within that region besides the famed Tawang Monastery...

And then he happened upon chance when he discovered the old British-drawn map of the area in the early twentieth century, even though the later dated version in the twenties was in reach. Nevertheless, Lord Fiske was beyond ecstatic when chance was kind to him. In his mid-thirties, he was past his prime but still full of excitement to finally be given the opportunity he waited his entire life for.

His mother had been right when she told him to be patient until the time was right, when chance would come and that he should not go without preparation.

"I'll say, Monty, after all these years," Dr. Joanne Reeves told him with a broad smile upon her face as she supervised with him the careful placing of the second idol into the crate with its companion. Following the death of Anne Fiske ten years ago, Montgomery took it upon himself to study the strange monkey idol and seek the notes that she had kept from his reaches. His mother, loving and strange combined, had protected him his entire life in attempts to make sure that he didn't suffer like his father had. She and Thomas Fiske had both been respected archaeologists, rather than having her stay behind and see to the well-being of the castle and staff. She was one of the many examples of what a woman should be, only for her to retire to home following the death of her husband just before their only son was born. It had always been him, her and Bates who served as his guardian.

"It seems your mother, rest her, had done the right thing in seeing that it did not happen immediately after her passing, or even after your father died," Reeves, a longtime friend of Anne's, told him with a tender hand placed on his shoulder. However, the comfort was very limited to Monty. "The museum can't thank you enough once more."

He chuckled and gently shrugged off the older woman's hand. "Yes, three weeks in heavy rainfall, humidity and forestry was certainly worth it yet again. Thankfully, we are nearing the end of September, as it's quite common where they are," he stated, rubbing the back of his neck as though detecting a phantom presence of the moisture his unprotected skin had to witness while traipsing the jungles with poor Bates and his two little monkey companions in tow.

"Now that leaves, what...two more?"

"Two more, yes - but the locations remain as a mystery, Joanne," Fiske answered, tapping his chin in thought. Actually, if his assumptions were correct, the third statue had to be somewhere in South America...

Reeves' smoky blue eyes behind wide oval spectacles regarded him curiously and concerned. She hummed when she turned her head entirely to look at him, but he refused to make eye contact with her. "Monty, you were nearly killed in that temple," she pointed out, "and from what your mother used to tell me, she and your father almost suffered as badly the first time - just before she found out she was carrying you, I must add. Maybe I should suggest -"

He turned to look at her now, affronted and nerved. He never asked anyone for any suggestions, much less from _her._ "Joanne, forgive me, but I don't know if you will _suggest_ that I take extra hands from the staff with me to locate the third statue when the time comes," he said coldly, folding his arms across his chest. "I survived the trap in India, didn't I? I sustained nothing serious." Indeed, if he sustained anything to any part of his body he prized highly since childhood, he would have lost everything before he got to find out what the mystery was behind the very legacy his parents left him, and he was too close to lose his way now.

But, of course, there were others who would stick their chins up at him and tell him that he was too rash so much of the time, and he would often call it insanity to just sit back and do nothing - but because of the trap in the temple which involved shooting spikes making his way, followed by a collapsing tunnel floor that he would have fallen into if he didn't have the gear with him, and his hands and feet would have been maimed in any way.

Reeves huffed and mimicked his arm fold. "Yes, but your luck can always run out. I used to remind Anne of that, and from what she told me, she used to drill that into you, too. I doubt you can refuse the assistance of this one I have in mind," she told him with a slight smile, an immediate change in her demeanor that infuriated him half the time.

"I know a young woman whom the world looks up to. She does not ask for anything in return, and she's very capable of anything. Her name is Kim Possible - the 'girl who can do anything'. My granddaughter helped fill me in on the details."

Monty raised an eyebrow. Kim Possible, hmm...where did he hear that name somewhere...? "I might have heard the name somewhere, Joanne, but do carry on," he said, his interest piqued now, earning a gracious smile from the older woman. "What has she accomplished?"

~o~

"How does Bueno Nacho sound as a way to cheer you up?"

Bueno Nacho - a blast from their youth up to now. Tara loved it, too, but it was just the boyfriend and the boyfriend's best friend and naked mole rat today like the good old days. Sad fact was Kim could not nurture her bean and cheese burrito combined with her salad over her churning stomach. Her own words continued to ring in her own mind:

 _"Still no men for me. And no amount of fictional romance - historical, fantasy, or even real - is going to have someone dashing ride my way. Another unanswered prayer of mine."_

She was more bummed out than anyone, even Ron and Rufus, realized - well, she was wrong again because he'd known her all their lives and read her well like a book.

"Hey, KP, isn't there anything that can cheer you up? It's been -"

"Yeah, I know, four years," she said glumly. "I saved the world from Drakken, and things have been quiet since then - but why is it that I am grown up but still single?!" She slammed both palms flat on the table in frustration, wishing miniature versions of Drakken and Shego were there just for stress relief. "Why can't I be like Kathryn in my book?"

Ron raised an eyebrow, his teeth sticking out like a donkey's in the midst of biting his taco. "You mean...hooked up with the best friend and sidekick?" he uttered, taking her off-guard in surprise.

"No!" Kim said quickly, waving her hands and giggling like the old schoolgirl she used to be. "No, I mean, deserving her happily ever after. Ron, I have nothing against you and Tara; it was your idea for the ending, remember?"

"Sure, but you know, all your friends around you have their...special someones," he said hesitantly, "and you yourself are practically living and enjoying life, doing what you do best...but..." He stopped himself there and exchanged a worried look with Rufus who covered his eyes as though trying to shove the thought from his brain.

Just like that, Bonnie's mocking words came to light after being in the dark for so long: _What good is saving the world if you don't have someone to share it with?_ Just, at the time, Kim Possible wished she could have made Rockwaller eat her words. And so close she was until it came to the horrid revelation that Eric was one of Drakken's creations just to attempt to destroy her.

He might have failed to destroy the world, but he destroyed much of her heart.

Just like always, Ron tried to cheer her up. "If it's not trouble, maybe the Halloween party will get you to cheer up?" he said with a tooth-baring grin. "The sugar character cookies -"

"Yum!" Rufus beamed, rubbing his stomach and smacking his lips.

"- the costumes, your mom and dad inviting everyone over, even Tara gets to go, Monique and Brick," Ron went on. All of it was tempting, but it was so little to cheer her up. Thankfully, she was saved by the bells thanks to Wade. It had been a few weeks since her last mission against Duff Killigan, and she hoped whatever this one would be would take her mind off things. After everything quieted down with Drakken and Shego, the villain population was becoming less and less. Life must very well go on; sooner or later, any of them would end up retiring.

"What's the sitch, Wade? And please make it something good," Kim pleaded. Stuck on new ideas for a book, and everything lately bordered on boring as hell...

The high school genius gave her a big grin. _"This is just right up your alley, Kim. We got a hit on the site."_

Something inside her lit up. There was no way she would let cynicism get in her way this time; she crossed her fingers behind the Kimmunicator. "Go on," she urged...and she just about exploded inside.

 _"Maybe you should see for yourself."_

Her tech friend who had so not lost contact with her despite life ever changing pulled up the message for her, obviously knowing the effect it would leave on her - and who could explain it when she saw the face she'd dreamily gazed upon since a younger, innocent age? Black, wavy hair shining like a raven's wing framing a pale, angular, chiseled face, finished with a cool, charming smile and sharp blue eyes that seemed to pierce the soul.

 _"Miss Possible, I am Lord Montgomery Fiske, British archaeologist and the world's leading simian expert. It is an honor to finally contact you and request your help. To keep it brief, I have heard so many great things about you, yet I regret to tell you I have not had the chance to read your book."_ He cleared his throat. _"Aside from that fact, I am in dire need of your assistance in recovering an ancient artifact I am in the process of locating, and I feel I am that much closer. As soon as I discover its whereabouts, your skills are very much needed to help retrieve it."_

 _"Dream come true, Kim?"_ Wade asked with a grin as soon as the message finished playing, but before she could answer, Ron was there and covering his ears.

"Blah, monkeys! The Monkey Man calls for you! Which means I am forced to experience anything monkey on this trip!" he babbled, earning a slap of the hand over his mouth.

"Ron, calm down," she snapped. "We're going because Lord Monty Fiske, a man I've had the pleasure of learning history under in high school, _asked_ for it. He's a scholar and respected man. Just how often does that kind of human being come around in the world?"

He snorted and waved his hand. "Fine, Kim, but I still say he's bad road."

Wade looked back and forth between them on the screen, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. _"Uh, should I leave you guys alone?"_ he asked.

"No, Wade, I need someone to back me up," Kim told him. However, despite her frustration, everything was too good to be true. A man across the ocean who dedicated his life to preserving wildlife and bringing in new additions to the cultured British Museum had sent her the message on her website asking for her assistance. "Lord Fiske didn't say when he needed me, did he?"

 _"No. He probably couldn't wait to just ASK for you."_

No, he couldn't, could he? Kim smiled. Just for once, things were starting to go right.

~o~

For his entire life, the first jade monkey idol that his parents found in Japan had sat in the study, but the young boy had been forbidden to touch it until he reached a more responsible age - and when he was old enough to understand. "It was this thing which caused the troubles of your father and myself," Anne had said when he was fifteen years old, closing her eyes and letting herself drown momentarily in the memory. "I just endured this burden long enough to keep you safe, my son. It's a burden...and a gift at the same time."

When her eyes had opened, she looked at him fondly even though there was no smile on her face. "Someday, I think you will be stronger to survive this, master it with everything you can. That is, if you believe in these stories as your father had. I'd doubted them for a moment until he was taken from us..."

That smile had faded then and there, and she'd broken down, but Monty rushed to her side and held her until the sobs subsided, and he'd tucked her into bed later that night with Bates' help.

For his entire life up to that point, Monty Fiske wondered about that strange statue in the family study, and he was never allowed in until just before he was accepted into university. When he was a young boy, he loved heading to the zoo with his mother and Bates, but the mere mention of monkeys even to Anne made her break down behind closed doors. All things simian was what took her husband from her, yet even if it affected her that much, why did she let her son show his love for them? He'd wondered that himself all his life - but the truth dawned on him when he became a young man. It was a part of who _and_ what he was...but no one would ever know the truth but himself and Bates.

Not even Miss Possible.

He found himself looking over the title of the book that Joanne Reeves had to lend him that had been her teenage granddaughter's - _Kathryn's Journey._ Interesting title...and they were all inspired by the life and adventures of this young lady who was still in college but would graduate in the coming summer. The main character was based off herself, albeit renamed, and intriguing nonetheless. Lord Fiske seldom found himself reading this material, and this was not one he had found himself captivated by his own hand. Epic adventure with elements of science fiction, mingled with one average girl placed with so much weight on her shoulders, and yet she managed to not lose one ounce of herself. If there was anything of himself that he made loud and clear to the world himself in regards to saving the ape family in Africa, it was the very question: what was one man to do this alone?

Should he now ask, what was one _girl_ to carry such a torch she had?

This Kim Possible was one individual who had proven she could do anything. At a relatively young age, she began to travel about the globe for those in need, from petty disputes to highly dangerous, threatening situations - notably involving the mad Dr. Drakken and even Professor Dementor - and one would wonder how she could do this. She was not alone, however; she had connections, but so many of them secret. One was a genius youth, now in high school. The girl herself was now attending Middleton University, applying for degrees in literature and history.

He found himself even more intrigued on the spot. In some aspects - or maybe more - this young lady was _just like him_.

Except she did not possess the unnatural oddity he carried.

"Milord," Bates told him after being the one to peruse the book's pages out of his own curiosity, "if I must say so, she's...impeccable with translating her adventures onto paper for millions of inspired young ones worldwide. She's very much like..." He stopped there and looked up at the nobleman who smiled absently and drummed his fingers across the desk of his study.

Fiske hummed to himself. "Indeed. She has such drive. And to think I doubted Reeves for the moment." Except he had yet to see it for himself, to see if she was as physically capable as her slogan, "She can do anything!" He had to suppress a huff.

He found himself looking down at the textbook in front of him. Accounting the travels of a Spanish nobleman in the late seventeenth century, he happened across the great rainforest and was said to have been stranded deep within, his men starving off one by one until Francisco Suarez himself remained - but whilst the common details of living off of wild fruits and any living creature he came in contact with were present, there was one important factor that stood out.

Suarez mentioned a _monkey temple._

His heart had just about leaped into his throat.

Of course, by the time the account was completed and having been lost for two centuries before it was discovered once more, the man himself was in a state of delirium by the time he was rescued, believed to have been mentally affected by some local fever. No one ever found this "monkey temple" in the Amazon rainforest since then.

Now Lord Fiske would see to this with Miss Possible, and he could hardly contain himself when he would get this through to her friend who ran her website that the arranged time would come.

 **Even though it was obvious enough, I did forget to say that reviews are appreciated, but no flames please. :)**


	3. Going Wild

**At the beginning is one of my favorite songs by Celtic Woman, in English and Gaelic combined. :) I've said this before, but in case no one remembers, Ireland is in my heritage even though I am American, but little as the amount is, I'm proud to have it, along with English, French and Native American. Small facts of the day aside, enjoy the latest. "Siuil a Run" itself is a traditional Irish love song in which a woman sings of her love who goes off to fight, and she supports him in every step of the way.**

Chapter Three

Going Wild

From the moment she got the word that she would be aiding Lord Montgomery Fiske, British scholar and renowned explorer, she was unable to think of anything else for the rest of the day. Nothing but returning back to the apartment she and Monique shared, turned back on the Knowing Channel documentaries with HIM - and her fantasies went wild from there, with possibility and excitement as though she were a teenager again.

This time there was no shame in it. No worries for now, at least, either.

There came a point when Kim had to pause the documentary at a certain place she admired the angle of his face, his expression, and reached for her IPod which had been a high school graduation present from both her parents. She had to turn on the best song that she could think of - well, one of the best.

 _Siuil, siuil, siuil a run_

 _(Go, go, go my love)_

 _Siuil go sochair agus siuil go ciuin_

 _(Go quietly and go peacefully)_

 _Siuil go doras agus ealaigh liom_

 _(Go to the door and fly with me)_

 _Is go dte tu mo mhuirnin slan_

 _(And may you go safely, my darling)_

To listen to those magical words and gaze upon his face, she was very much aware of only him in her imagination, feeling her heart clench and increase in tempo, her skin burning and moistening, her whole body oblivious to anything but...

She screamed in surprise again when someone tapped her on her bared knee. "Monique!" she said, laughing and taking the earbuds from her ears, protecting both her cherished devices. "Sorry, I didn't hear you."

"Of course you didn't, girl!" the other young woman said, waving her hand and laughing the stock off. "What were you - oh!" Her skin was dark that there was no way a blush could be seen in her cheeks. "Monty boy again."

"Address him properly as Lord Fiske, girl," Kim returned, snickering. "And yeah, but this time is more than just fantasy. Do the math." She batted her lashes.

Monique's eyes bulged so wide they nearly popped out of their sockets. "Y-you mean you're going to meet him?" she nearly screeched. "He asked your help!"

"Keep your voice down," Kim said, even though she was happy the excitement was shared with her. "Yeah, he's looking for the location of a rare artifact, so I don't know when I'll see him..."

Her friend and roommate screeched again and flopped beside her on the couch. "Kim, you're really gonna score!" she said.

The redhead gawked. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me! Maybe after the work part is over, you should really fall head over heels - and for real this time!" There was no mistaking what she was implying, and it made Kim keel over inside. She could barely control the shakes her body cracked to release.

"Monique, don't get me started," she pleaded. "I've had enough of boys and men, especially after..."

The other interrupted her with a snort and another slap on the knee. "Girl, don't you get all mopey now. That was in the past! You heard from all of us - me, Ron, Tara, Wade and of course Rufus - there are other guys out there besides Eric and Josh Mankey. Someone real, someone rare...and of course, masculine," she finished with a furrowed, devious brow that it made Kim blush so hotly she was sure her skin matched her hair.

"I don't know. Lord Fiske is definitely...handsome," she admitted, her heart still thumping if slowing down, "but I don't think he'd go for a younger, immature gal like myself." And besides, he was wealthy, powerful, and everything that she didn't care about, that someone else might accuse her of being a gold digger when she was not. If she did want someone like him, it would be for the facts that neither of them would have to change for the other, pretend to be something else, and would not betray for whatever reasons.

~o~

It was amazing that one young mind could recall so many events of her teenage years and place them all in a book, even if she had to change some facts around to befit the hunger for entertainment in her readers' minds.

Satisfied that he found the location of the third statue, Monty Fiske decided to take a break and relish the knowledge that they were getting close to this. After this one, there would be one more, and the four jade idols would be brought to full circle. Besides that, it was the myth behind them that sent him off the cliff of excitement.

The legend of the Mystical Monkey Power.

His dear mother, rest her, had said that she had difficulty believing in this story even when her husband came to her and revealed that his father before him had kept these old texts hidden away safely, stating that it was an ancient family secret. Apparently, Thomas Fiske had been in league with a very secret Japanese ninja society along with an old childhood friend of his who was born in a village of that area; they'd even gone to the same boarding school together when they were boys, but grew apart when reaching young adulthood until they reconnected years later. His father by then had married his college sweetheart and his friend arranged in a union by his own family. Marital statuses aside, the two different families and separate cultures were bound by the one thing that Montgomery Fiske himself now had the burden - or was it really? - on his shoulders.

According to the legend, there were four different temples across the globe but never directly written in the records of Japan itself, as the secret school itself was founded by a great warrior who was said to have originally mastered the mystical monkey arts of _Tai Shing Pek Kwar_. But after the man himself died of natural causes, his followers made the decision to part the four jade simian statues to ensure the magic would not be granted to another, lest there be one who would reign tyranny with its might. There could only be one true master of Monkey Kung Fu - but in thousands of years past, no such luck.

Now that Monty Fiske had two statues so far in his family's possession, and the third well on the way, he believed that there _was_ one indeed destined, but while he did believe there was some fact to these stories, he was not entirely sure about "magic" being the keyword. "If you can see it, if you touch and feel it, then it is real," Anne had said, her eyes shining when she sat before her young son in front of the lounge fire.

He looked up when two small, furry faces ooked and approached him as he sat before the fire, having stuffed themselves full of bananas before they arrived. Monty chuckled when they both plopped themselves before the fire burning, curling up into each other. Mila and Chippy were his best and clever, fierce little friends he found whilst in Congo a few years back. They had been caught in a poacher's trap and would have been unfortunate had he not come to their aid. Having monkeys as pets was illegal, but these little ones in return saved him when he fell into a trap that he did not see coming himself. When they saw his...difference from other natural born men, they connected to him, for lack of a better term, and he knew he could not just let them be taken to the London Zoo.

How long had it been since he had a few furry friends who _identified_ with him?

Should he also add that it had been so long since he'd seen a young face with true interest in adventure, excitement, and real dedication? Back to the matter with Miss Possible. He was into the third chapter which concerned the beginning of an event involving a giant cheese factory - and yes, it was an actual cheese building, not a structure covered with it. He had to say, so many of these adventures made him laugh that he could not help it.

Should he say ALL the adventures with Dr. Dragon - who was actually based off of Dr. _Drakken_ \- were comical if still extremely lethal and global threatening? It was highly difficult to keep a straight face at half of the things written that Kathryn experienced. Her partner, and he meant _partner_ and not _sidekick_ , was named Richard; for a moment, Monty was reminded of a medieval couple rather than a modern pair. This young man was very capable if not considered as important as the lady herself. Fiske had seen the picture of the writer herself...and he felt like he had been taken aback by a great gust of wind when he beheld the black-and-white photograph.

Though he was not able to tell the color of her hair and eyes, there was an obvious glow about her as she smiled for the camera, naturally sat with a book opened before her, not worried about her public image but still kept up appearances. The more Monty gazed upon her oval face framed with thick waves, admired the innocent but carefree smile, something twitched in his stomach -

He slammed the back end of the book closed then and concentrated on the tale itself rather than the one who wrote it. This was purely professional and would stay so. After he had her help with getting the third statue, maybe the fourth to follow if chance granted it, they would part ways.

But as he delved deeper into the depths of this rare treasure, he could not help but feel as if something was drawing him into its clutches...or should he say HER clutches?

~o~

"Girl, you could not have picked a more better costume!"

"Just like you had to look more like a showstopper instead of something fantastical, right?!"

"Hey, I always wanted to go like that!"

"Just as I have not been something like THIS since I was a kid!"

It wasn't a friendship-threatening argument by any means; they'd always been at each other over fashion since they were teens. It was a sisterly bond between them. Safe to say Kim was actually excited over her costume coming in two weeks' time at the same time as Monique's. Just a problem that one of the details of the costume would leave her a little weighted and standing out...

Monique slapped her playfully on the back. "Maybe you might score in time for the Halloween dance," she said. "Maybe His Lordship of the Monkeys will ask you to his own dance across the ocean -"

"Monique!" she scolded, unable to stop the blush going to her cheeks. "It's not done that easily."

"Oh, maybe not, but I doubt a man like him can resist a woman like you!"

Kim growled through her teeth. They were both at work at Club Banana, but their break was just ending as they made their way back to register. "That's pushing the line. This is business, not pleasure, and as much as I find the guy...attractive, I'm not willing to go so far no matter how much I might want to." If experience taught her anything, it was that if anything seems too good to be true, it totally was. She didn't see that Eric was a fake, and she wouldn't take any chances now with Lord Montgomery Fiske...

...or was she being too hard on her idol?

No, she knew what she wanted, but she was also intending to be safe than sorry.

The Kimmunicator saved her life from this awkward convo. "When's the date, Wade?" she asked happily, leaping inside with every organ in her body when he gave her the coordinates and the country Lord Fiske wanted to meet her.

~o~

Ah, to be in the Brazilian rainforest. Humidity and the sun beating down on him and Bates through the trees, climbing over great roots and soil. Even doing what it took to slice down any snakes attempting to make them their next victims. Let's hope the gleam of the blade of his machete he brought with him would keep them second guessing that decision.

"Milord, wait for me!" Bates called for him as he hurried on his short legs to catch up with his master, who paused and turned to frown at him.

"I don't believe I was aware I was going too fast."

"Not at all, but I am getting too old for this sort of thing."

Fiske snorted. "Perhaps I should leave you at home with Chippy and Mila from now on - or maybe I should bring them with me instead as they know the wild better than you," he suggested before turning ahead - and in time for a massive python to slither down his way, but just as it bared its fangs and was striking forward...

...its head thudded to the earth, the body coiling after it. Monty chuckled as he looked down at it and then at the vivid ruby blood lingering on his blade. Bates, however, gasped in utter shock at his reflexes and quick wit. "Actually, lord, I don't think I should leave you alone..."

He turned to look back at his valet impatiently. "Really, I am a grown man and I can take care of myself," he snapped. "Now, come. Miss Possible cannot be kept waiting at the coordinates."

~o~

Every time she jumped out of a plane, the wind on her face and in her hair as well as the exciting adrenaline in her blood - this was always the best part, but the same could not be said for Ron. You'd think that growing up a little bit would mean moving on from some old fears, but this was just like his inability to get over his deep-rooted simian issues stemmed since his first and only summer at Camp Wannaweep.

"Ron, when are you going to learn?!"

"What, come on! The trees never agree with me, KP!"

She just about groaned in agitation when she crouched on a thick, curling tree branch and looked up to see him ensnared in the grasps of more claws the trees carried. She unclasped the hooks holding her parachute to herself and shrugged everything off - with the exception of her utility belt - before slowly starting Ron's way to help him...only to feel the weight give beneath her, and she found herself falling through the trees.

" _Kim!_ " Ron screamed after her.

Everything happened so fast that she did not have time to reach for her grapple gun and shoot for somewhere in the trees above her, assuming she might die from this fall - only to find herself caught into a pair of strong arms, handling her like a precious collectible. Kim barely heard herself catch a breath as she found her attention on the fact she was _saved_ , when she didn't ask for it, but she wasn't that proud of herself to tell whoever her rescuer was that she had it under control...

...but when she looked up, sharp cerulean blues gazed into hers and knocked more breath out of her lungs.

"Miss Possible, I presume?" a cultured accent inquired, the arms continuing to hold her as their owner waited for her answer, a slight quirk of a smile tugging both sides of his mouth.

"Uh...yes," she said, feeling like she had been washed over by a tidal wave as she looked into the eyes of the man whose face she'd seen only on the Knowing Channel - and who had called for her assistance when it never seemed likely to happen. There was so much that could happen, so much she could discuss with him - but she was getting too far ahead because the slightest mistake made would very much stain anything in the future. Right now, she was here to help him retrieve a rare artifact here in the rainforest, and that was all.

He set her down, watching her as she took off her helmet which she had forgotten was still secured. Her hair was slightly damp with sweat, and now it was free to breathe fresh air. "It's nice to meet you...Lord Fiske," Kim said, still straightening her hair. "I'm sorry for coming in like that -" She was babbling, and wanted to hit herself for it, but she couldn't help it. She'd wanted to come in for a smooth greeting, but then she had to just stop to help Ron only for that damned branch to break - only to land right into _his arms._

His silky smooth chuckle eased her nerves. "I have had quite the adventure coming through this forest myself, Miss Possible," he said, clasping his hands behind his back. Now that she stood in front of him, she had to admit he was more...striking in person. The fine build if not bulky like Brick Flagg or any other athlete she'd known since younger days, the lift of his chin as he carried himself confidently, and the faint rays of sunlight bouncing off ruffled raven hair parted to one side. "I trust you have not been injured?"

"Oh, not once." She looked down at herself and was pleased to find no scratches, but she hated the scent of her own sweat. Then she found herself looking at the other man who came from behind him; he was shorter, rounder built, and maybe appeared older than the explorer himself. "And, uh -?"

"Oh, forgive me, my manners," Fiske said with a light laugh. "This is Bates, my valet."

"Miss Possible," Bates answered.

"Nice to meet you. Lord Fiske, we didn't think we'd meet up with you when we only just landed."

A thick eyebrow raised. "'We'?" he repeated, and was answered when a scream of her name as well as a series of snapping branches followed by more wordless screams, ending with a crash before all three of them. Kim had to slap her forehead in embarrassment, Bates' jaw dropped, and Lord Fiske raised both eyebrows so high they nearly disappeared beneath his hairline, before they furrowed in a frown.

Her cheeks flushed as they watched her friend pick himself up and take off his helmet, throwing it to the ground. "KP, next time we are aiming for clearer ground instead of the trees," Ron complained as he dusted himself off. His back faced the three so he paid no mind to the two men, one being the one they were here for, but Fiske did not seem to mind.

"Gentlemen, this is my friend Ron," she said awkwardly, resisting the urge to shift on her feet. "Ron Stoppable."

"Charmed," Lord Fiske said, though he was far from amused. The coldness in his eyes she now found herself seeing made her blood chill and her flesh creep. Somehow he had already developed an immediate dislike for her best friend and sidekick.

 **I could not resist a good little twist, mildly romantic as it is, involving Kim falling from a tree and into Lord Monty Fiske's arms upon arrival. :D There's more to come, so don't go away.**


	4. The Temple of Doom

**Couldn't resist naming the chapter after one of my favorite Indiana Jones films. XD**

Chapter Four

The Temple of Doom

Her photograph did not do her justice - the visage in front of him was beyond striking, blending amidst their surroundings and yet standing out at the same time.

Never did he expect to run into her before they arrived at their destination which was none other than the hidden monkey temple, and it was five more kilometers to go from where he and Bates had stopped - and in time to hear rustle above in the trees. He'd looked up in time to see a woman falling from somewhere above, and she would have broken like eggs in every bone in her body if he had not swiftly caught her like a fallen angel.

Fiske blinked. _Angel_...?

Women were not in his area, for his own reasons besides the fact he was often a bank to them, so he'd never had his eyes on a gold-digging female; that was not the only issue, but one he'd been born with that his mother and Bates helped him hide his entire life. A part of himself he would make damned sure this one he rescued in his arms would never find out.

Yet as he held her, brief as it was, how could he describe the lump in his throat when lush emerald eyes locked with his? Looked at him, grateful he snatched her before she broke in every bone in her body, did not have proper means to thank him...

A part of him wanted to just tell her he was not what she thought he was, as the admiration in her eyes was crystal clear, like their souls had already connected before they even had their first conversation. This was impossible; she was a young woman, bright and with so much life ahead of her, yet accomplished so much since an innocent stage. Not that different from him. This was the reason why Monty Fiske had difficulty keeping the smile off his face as he looked at Kim Possible for the first time with his own two eyes.

Removing the helmet after she pulled herself together, a wild wave of fire flew over her shoulders that made his blood burn. Why did his natural instincts have to do this to him now?

Thankfully, introducing her to his loyal valet distracted him for the moment, and they could get to business. Even though she didn't say it directly, something told Monty that she had known about him and his work for some time before today. She apparently was one of the few young faces to truly take him seriously. Or was she that eager to please, that overwhelmed by him that she could not speak lest she said one wrong phrase and crushed everything?

It made Fiske feel somewhat gratified that she thought so highly of him that she was willing to respect him. Perhaps one day after their assignment, he would return that favor. See if she was really as good as everyone spoke, and as her book detailed.

And he could see why she only _based_ her fictional sidekick off of her real one, and not made him completely the same.

The young man was nothing like Miss Possible; he was clumsy and idiotic, if you asked Fiske. Blond-haired, freckled, and round-faced, but otherwise depicting sharp ability to see through people. The nobleman had to guess that the boy would look him in the eyes and peer through his soul; if that happened, he had another person on his list of personal dislikes. But he would tolerate the lad for the sake of the woman he requested directly thanks to Dr. Reeves.

Add in lack of grace in his appearances. "KP, next time we are aiming for clearer ground instead of the trees." Fiske suppressed a snort at the boy's additional lacking in the thrill. Why on earth would he be tagging along as so-called "help"? He looked at her with the question in his eyes, but she didn't look at him or Bates.

"Gentlemen, this is my friend Ron. Ron Stoppable."

He might have said he was charmed, but when the boy finally turned to look at him, the other was far from ecstatic to match. This was going to be interesting, but he could not wait to never see this face again as soon as they were finished, but if he ever needed her for the fourth statue, then he supposed he could not refuse her wish to bring this fool along.

In other words, he was lying when he said he was pleased to meet the other. And the suspicion was clear in the chocolate brown orbs.

"Kim's idol, whom she speaks of...fondly," he bluntly said after a sarcastic, brusque shake of gloved hands, to which Monty drew his own back as though the other's was something vulgar he had touched.

"Ron!" she hissed, making him chuckle. The wonders about her admiration for him had been confirmed after all. This had just gotten easier for him, but it had begun to be a tad awkward for her.

"I believe the introductions and a 'getting to know you' social call can wait until after we finish our business," he said, looking up at the sky. The afternoon was late, and he wanted to have the five kilometers left to be completed before the night fell. "Miss Possible, I look forward to seeing how you can do anything as they say," he told her with a smile that made her eyes lower bashfully, but the crooked grin she returned was visible for his eyes.

"If you don't mind me asking," Stoppable called when he struggled to catch up to them, panting and out of breath that Monty wanted to shove his boot up his mouth like an adolescent, "where is this - AAAAAHHH!"

All three heads whirled around and stopped in their tracks, in time to see the boy cowering in his path, curling into himself as though trying to protect himself from whatever he saw. Following his glance, Fiske just about chortled his head off, Miss Possible stifling giggles of her own, while Bates only shook his head, at the sight of the family of common squirrel monkeys in the overhead tree branches.

"Mr. Stoppable," Fiske said, almost growling in his teeth, "why on earth would a pack of simians frighten you as though they were an incoming category four hurricane?"

Unfortunately, his teeth were chattering and he was too scared out of his wits to even answer. The young woman sighed as she looked up at him and answered. "I'm sorry about him. It goes back to when we were kids, and he had a bad summer camp experience with the monkey mascot. He shared a bunk with it, and the chimp always gave him a hard time, bit him and nearly tore him apart..."

Fiske's throat rumbled as he chuckled at the story told. So, Stoppable feared all things related to monkeys - and especially the chimpanzee. Whenever Miss Possible turned on his wildlife documentations, she must have a secret perverse pleasure in scaring the life out of her poor friend, whose attention she snapped back to life with pulling him to his feet and snapping her fingers before his eyes. "That was one...crazy monkey!" he sputtered, making Monty roll his eyes.

"Of course," he told him, "you do realize that chimpanzees are not truly monkeys as they do not possess tails as the ones above us. They are actually part of the ape family."

"Monkeys, apes!" the young man retorted. "They all hold stuff with their feet and bite the hell out of you if you give them the wrong idea, man! We're talking about _total freaks of nature_!"

His teeth rattled as he gritted his jaw tighter, his lips keeping together in the tightest glare he could give this troublesome boy for his audibly loud vocalization of his hatred for Lord Monty Fiske's field of expertise - and what was a part of who he was as a man. There were more than a million things he could say to give this insipid lad a piece of his mind, but because of the evident horror in both eyes of Kim Possible and Bates, he restrained himself and coldly insisted they carry on. His temper continued to boil at optimum levels that he wished he could pull Ron Stoppable aside here and now just to get it over with.

What the young fool did not realize was that he had insulted the lover of monkeys himself, calling him exactly what he called those around him he studied and saved: a freak of nature.

~o~

Why could Ron not get a grip for once?!

If you asked her, the monkeys in the trees were nothing short of cute, feeding each other berries and twigs to find, and swinging from branch to branch, being cute and all. As well, don't get her started on anything natural and disgusting that Lord Fiske explained in his documentaries that monkeys were known to do when they were mad.

She had been nervous to even look at the man's face when her best friend had to insult him like that and his profession. Not surprisingly and disappointing at the same time, Fiske's glower as he could not let go of what Ron said remained. She had to avert her eyes ahead when his eyes rotated down to her. She still chose to hike beside him while Ron stayed close behind her, and Bates the valet on the opposite of his master.

"Lord Fiske," she said in a hushed undertone, feeling a little more than awkward that he must think the wrong thing about her just because of - "I'm so sorry about Ron."

"His fault is not your own." Though his glare wavered, his tone was still clipped that it made her flinch.

Was this how he really was around other people? If so, now she was more worried than ever that she might mess up herself. The Brits could be so stuck-up, from what she heard, and their polite demeanors were made for appearance whether they liked it or not. You often had a hard time reading through them - unless you were keen enough to spot certain twitches in the mouth or a flash in the eyes.

"He really means well," she tried to reason. "A bad experience can do that to a person."

"More than one 'bad experience' is enough as it is to insult one in return who specializes in his greatest fear." He was not shy about voicing it loud enough for Ron to hear.

"Hey!"

Saved by the bells, thanks to Bates. "Milord, if I may say so, perhaps you can share the map with her?"

She sighed with relief that no more tension exploded. Fiske's expression changed from irritable to something resembling excitement that a child would have over news of a new flavor of ice cream. Chuckling, he turned to look back at Kim. "Of course, when we reach our destination in one more kilometer, I shall show it to you, but know that it is an ancient simian temple housing a jade icon -" He was interrupted and halfway turned with renewed annoyance that Kim had to share with him at the sound of Ron's chattering teeth at the simple mention of the word "monkey". Brushing this off, the explorer continued, "As I was saying, there is a jade monkey statue deep within that temple that must be recovered. It is the third out of four in existence."

"And you want me to go in and get it for you," Kim stated, thinking this might be no big. What could be worse than a few ancient booby traps to spring to get what her idol wanted for the museum? His eyes lit up at her understanding and his smile matched, answering her without saying the word.

"But you won't be going in alone, Miss Possible," he added, surprising her. "I am going in with you. A gentleman never lets a lady go by herself."

~o~

He knew from the moment he laid his eyes on her that she could take care of herself, but at the last minute, he decided he could not let her go by herself. This was also HIS expedition that he felt she needed someone more...competent than the monkey-phobe himself. How on earth could she manage to survive and succeed at every mission with Stoppable around?

 _A gentleman never lets a lady go by herself..._

Just what had he become when he had to speak the truth to her - or rather, a form of it? He felt like he should have made a fool of himself, but strangely enough, it didn't happen that way. But the way she looked at him with such fire in her eyes, opposite of her smile, told another story that did not match her words.

"I'd be honored if you could help, Lord Fiske, but I've skimmed Mount Everest, flown a spacecraft and won regional cheer-offs that I can go in alone," she insisted.

"Nonsense, I called you to help me, so therefore, I should have the say to accompany you and make sure we both get out alive," Monty stated, mildly annoyed that she had to question his decision, and she bristled but did not say anything but satisfy him with her acquiesce.

"If you insist then, Your Lordship."

Was it his imagination, or was the desire to please him suddenly dropping because of one simple statement? He tried not to smile. Being eager to worship could only do so much at a time. "Then it is settled," he said, clasping his hands behind his back as they continued their journey until they finally reached their destination and a clearing which displayed it within a majestic view.

"Oh, isn't it magnificent?" he heard himself breathe out, his heart bursting once before returning to normal for a split second, then more rapid pounds to prove he was ecstatic beyond his wildest dreams.

Miss Possible's expression was priceless, no words intended to explain it or any words to slip past her parted lips. Her friend, however, resumed his chittering, chattering teeth. At least it would only be him and the lady venturing in.

"How do we get in?" Possible asked after a long pause. "I read there's always going to be traps you never see coming..."

He chuckled, amused at her curiosity and caution. She was more prepared than he thought, as well. "Indeed, but I am confident we will make it through." He turned back with her to glare at Stoppable when he pulled himself together.

"I hope, for your sake, Your Lordship, that you don't get my best friend killed for this."

"Do calm down, Mr. Stoppable," Fiske said icily, "and rest assured, I won't have Miss Possible maimed in any sense."

She surprised him yet again, this time targeting both him and her sidekick. "Both of you, stop. You two can argue as soon as we are finished." And just like that, her sweet, crooked grin was back in place. "Lead the way, my lord?" she asked, just as sweetly.

Wouldn't mind if he did. He returned the proud beam without trouble.

Both Bates and her wreck of a friend remained behind, both watching with uncertainty. He and the lady made their way into the mouth of the monkey itself, gaping and swallowing them up as they ventured into the cavern itself. Thousands of years prompted vines and thick roots to penetrate powerful stone, but to hold the structure at the same time. Nothing that he didn't expect. Shining his flashlight, he gazed upon the ancient carvings of monkeys from the dawn of time, accompanied by archaic inscriptions and exotic Spanish carvings. "Wow," Possible breathed, keeping her voice low. "I never really paid attention to my surroundings this way much."

Fiske shot her a bemused look. "You don't look at your surroundings in an appreciative manner enough?"

"I'm always busy saving the world. It leaves little room for enjoyment."

Somehow it made him recall all his times where he made time for his research only and nothing else, aware of what he was doing but did not care about socializing. He had no friends, no real friends besides Bates and the monkeys at his castle, and certainly never had a woman to bring back home, but now was not a good time to tell her his similarities with her. However, she seemed to have a wider circle than he back in her cozy little hometown in central America. In a way, he envied her.

He stopped upon hearing the noise - a faint click, but it bounced off the walls to make it difficult in deciphering where it came from. "Shh," he said, shining his flashlight and trying to find where it was coming from. She had her own, mimicking him. Together, they did not see anything peculiar...until the rumble sounded in their eardrums accompanied by a stunning shift of the ancient concrete beneath their feet.

The floor was _moving._

Which meant either the tunnel would collapse into an endless chasm beneath them, or it would lead to a spike pit, acid pit, or anything deadly awaiting them below.

She sensed the danger, too. "Come on!" she yelled, taking him by his wrist and pulling him forward, just as the gravity shifted like a roller, raising behind them into the shape of a great wave, following them and chasing like predator after prey. Her speed matched up to his as they ran for their lives, finding three sets of hallways - and one of them would lead to the tomb of the third jade monkey.

He just as soon as groaned, gripping his flashlight and wishing he could break it. They did not have time for this!

"God, which way?!" she cried, frustrated as he was.

Monty growled through his bared teeth; she turned behind him to see the stone wave closing in on them, and apparently they were left with no choice but to leap at the last minute through the left - and he meant his left, pulling her with him - just as the various stones crashed through the arch, entrapping them and blocking them from ever leaving through this way again.

He found himself laying halfway up on his haunches, staring at the cave-in and knowing they wouldn't be coming back this way anymore. But there was no telling if THIS direction was going to take them to the idol. But to rush into it would get them both killed. Coughing, he dusted himself off and stood up, looking down at Kim - and why did his throat tighten when he saw how similar her state was to him?! Her black blouse which bared her midriff was heavily covered with debris and dust. She had to spit out what had accidentally gotten into her mouth, turning her face away from him, of course. He stifled a chuckle. She had been out for the adventure before, but now she must have gotten an actual taste of doomed temples.

Leaning down, Monty offered his hand out to her. "I take it you have had your first taste of archaeological excavations, eh, Miss Possible?"

"Cheerleading has saved my life so far," she answered, dusting herself off from top to bottom, the sight somehow strangely attractive. "I never imagined this stuff from the movies could actually happen, and Ron and I both grew up with _Indiana Jones._ " They were now walking down the corridor, flashlights scanning for more possible traps along the way.

He raised an eyebrow at her as he gazed from one corner of his eye. "You and Stoppable go back?"

"Since pre-K," she answered. "We've known each other all our lives. We go to college together, too, and he's currently dating one of my cheerleader members and friends from high school. They're still going strong."

"And yourself?" Aside from her worldwide successes, there was little to nothing known about her...personal life, but it was no surprise that she was still single. Men must eye her and throw themselves at her, or was it because of the fact the entire world knew her name and face that they didn't think a permanent relationship was possible? He began to think that a woman like Kim Possible would not want to trade any part of her identity for a man who saw her only as a trophy, either.

Her sigh was barely audible to bounce off the walls if they couldn't reach his eardrums. "Not so lucky. It's a long story I'd rather not discuss now."

Monty hummed. It was that serious that it could not be discussed while their lives were very much at risk in this place. He decided to respect her wishes and closed his lips on the topic. "It's a pity that your...friend has to carry the burden of fear for simians of every species," he said bitterly, getting a vapid expression before it softened.

"I tried telling him what a...great role model you were," she said. "I've known your work since I began high school, from your protection of the monkeys around the world to the poaching rates going down slowly, and to raising more awareness. It's wonderful."

He could not keep the smile off his face at her praise of his life and achievements - but there was so much about himself that would utterly repulse her. "Yes, monkeys and apes are majestic creatures vastly related to us that they must be preserved," he said absently.

"See, Lord Fiske? I wish Ron could understand you're a good man who means no harm to him."

He had to suppress yet another sigh. If only she knew...

~o~

Okay, a floor raising to awareness to their presence, then rolling after them like a tsunami as they fled for their lives - then come across three different tunnels, forced to just choose one only to save their own skins?! Just their day. But how could she have prepared for this? And how could he? He mentioned one time in one of his previous adventures that he was forced to make a choice between TWO different doorways while in an Egyptian tomb of a long-lost priestess. That experience nearly cost him an entire leg.

Kim had to say this adventure she was sharing with him had only gotten more...interesting. Not like she hadn't faced danger before, but to be in a tomb of an ancient civilization was fresh for her. And with her idol of all people made it better.

Like she said, if only Ron got it through his head that Lord Monty Fiske was a good man who cared about the ape world, about life itself, and among other things. However, the man himself did not respond to her words which made her lower her eyes, cheeks burning with embarrassment. Maybe she said too much.

Having to choose between left, right and middle, the left doorway was the closest they would go even though the unknown lay ahead of them both. Kim gulped even though she tried to stay positive. They would find that statue in no time, but there had to be more traps ahead...

"This is very similar to the past two I encountered," Fiske was telling her as he shone his light on the walls, which carried the inscriptions and carvings of every monkey species in existence. It made her wonder why was it monkeys, not that she was freaked by them like Ron was. "All four idols have a very fascinating legend behind them."

"You never did tell me what that story was."

"No, I never had the chance. But the locals believe that placing them in precise alignment would give an individual a great power, otherwise known as Mystical Monkey Power."

They had been walking for some time now before they came to a halt at the sight of a pedestal in the middle of a room at the end of the tunnel, surrounded with streams of sunlight coming from above. There didn't seem to be anything unusual, but they had to tread carefully. Kim had been so interested in hearing more of the legend that she decided it had to wait...because their prize waited in the middle of the room. "The jade monkey!" she gasped when she recognized it right away. The statue itself looked like it had been carved from granite, with explicit features of the animal in its name; the eyes seemed to glow vividly even from where she and Lord Fiske were standing.

"Oh, when we get it out of here, I shall see to it that the National Museum celebrates!" he declared, laughing with her, nearly doubling over as if he'd just gotten the award for his good record. His laughter, high and almost like a...a _monkey_...echoed off the walls before he remembered himself and their situation, then cleared his throat. "Perhaps you wouldn't mind doing the honors of grabbing the statue while I search for a way out of here?"

"No big." With that, she cartwheeled into the air and landed safely before the pedestal, watching him as he began his search for the way out of this room, but found none so far. Worry began to swell within her, but he asked her to do the simple job of removing the monkey from its sacred place -

\- but when she did, the pedestal itself began to groan from centuries of standing tall, vanishing where it once stood...only for _water_ to come through and begin to flood the floor of the tomb. "Lord Fiske!" Kim yelled, hurrying over to him with the idol in both arms; the weight wasn't bothersome, but it sure was cumbersome. He still had not found the way out, but now they had another major problem:

The chamber was going to fill with water, and they were going to drown.


	5. Invitations

Chapter Five

Invitations

"Lord Fiske!" she yelled again, turning around only to see him running up to her, taking the statue from her into his arms. "We need to get out of here now!"

"I couldn't agree more!" he replied, looking down at the hole where the water was pouring in at a rapid pace, barely reaching the middles of their calves. He held the idol in both arms while surveying the growing trouble calmly - much calmer than she felt inside. Was he always this calm in danger's face, too? And his words matched. "Seldom have I ever encountered surprise traps like this one."

Now that she had free hands, Kim fished around her belt and found her grapple gun. Overhead was a circular ledge going around, laying beneath the few opened sources of lights - and there lay their only way out. "Come on, Your Lordship!" She raised the gun to the ceiling with one hand while she extended her other to him. Maybe not as surprisingly, he had a strong grip enough to hold the monkey statue in the crook of one arm while he wrapped his other around her waist and drew her close to him.

For a moment, she was distracted by the knowledge and feel of his body _so close_ to hers. A sudden warmth washed over her, even blocked the cold wetness around her legs that was the water of doom. Though he was lean and not bulky, she felt he had a strong muscular structure. The flush in her cheeks returned with a fury.

His throat clearing made her snap back to reality and fire the gun overhead. The hook latched onto solid earth connected with ancient stone. Pushing the button, they were hauled from their fate to their possible safe spot -

\- just as the flooding chamber floor rumbled and then crumbled, revealing an endless chasm of black, filled with a vast underground ocean.

"Well, that I didn't expect," she said when they crouched from their place, panting with him. The jade monkey was safely between them, the green eyes glittering brighter. "The floor breaking and showing an oceanic cavern..."

Fiske chuckled and shook his head. "Always expect the unexpected." His attention flickered over to the statue in between them. His eyes might be shining enough to match the monkey's. "One more, and the collection is complete. I cannot thank you enough, Miss Possible," he told her with a gracious smile. She returned it before the sound of the roaring water beneath them returned them to the present crisis.

"Lord Fiske, as much as I want to say you're welcome, we should get out of here now, like I keep saying!"

He frowned as if irritated that he had been interrupted in his moment of glory over the third in the collection, and it made her raise an eyebrow. Something told her he could be so fixated on one thing at a time; that was something she never expected of him, but then again, a passionate person could put so much devotion into one thing. Fiske then turned to look overhead and see the crack in the wall that streamed in sunlight. It was large, but not large enough to put their bodies through one at a time - however, they could get the statue through and then themselves after.

Then two familiar and welcoming voices saved their graces.

"Kim!"

"Milord!"

Ron and Bates were both outside, having been searching the outside temple far and wide in case they needed help getting out. They both could count on their other halves in these situations. Kim hurried over and stuck her face the best she could through the crack and yelled for them. They came over in a flash. "KP, what happened?!" Ron cried.

"We got the statue, but the chamber is going to flood if we don't break this entrance opened wider," she said. "Can you get the statue first?"

Ron gawked for a moment as if shocked she had to put some stupid statue above her own life and the man behind her. "Y-yeah," he stuttered, then she turned and helped Lord Fiske bring the idol to the gap in the wall, pushing it through in three tries without leaving scratches. "We got it, Kim!"

"Good," Fiske said, dusting himself off. "Now, can you both get us out of here?" Behind them, the ocean was growing, still halfway from them, but they had two extra sets of hands to tear this exit out.

~o~

One more statue to go, but it would be some more weeks, or even months, before he would be able to track down that last one. Monty Fiske loathed waiting, but patience was a virtue.

Besides, wasn't one statue away with the third one now in his hold worth celebrating over when they all returned to England for the celebration? Reeves would be delighted to meet Kim Possible face-to-face, and there could not be a possibility that the young woman would be able to refuse an invitation to a dinner party for the museum.

Monty could not say he hated these formal affairs, but the fact that so often they were for the sake of publicity and image - and he wouldn't be surprised if unwanted Lady Fiske candidates would come onto him again. That was the main reason why he despised parties and fundraisers. Now with the third jade monkey idol in hold and ready to join its brothers, he was ecstatic - and if Miss Possible said yes, then he had another reason to relax.

"You have done well today, Miss Possible," he told her as soon as all four of them were safely a distance away from the temple. What a ride it had been, compared to the one in India. He could hardly wait to share that story with her - although as much as he wanted to, he wasn't sure if the tale of the discovery of the first statue would be a brilliant idea.

She laughed and carried the statue in both her arms, refusing his offer to carry it because she was not as dainty as she might look. "Lord Fiske, you can call me Kim or Kimberly now." Her friend the monkey-phobe snorted, but they ignored him.

"Honestly, I'd be honored...Kimberly." He felt his brows furrow but did not match his lips which continued to smile down at her. She seemed to have become more relaxed around him since their episode with the deadly water pit that would have become their shared grave. "Perhaps you should call me -"

He never got to finish his sentence when the buffoon cut them both off with a yelp.

"Ron!" Kim exclaimed, half in irritation and half in amusement, but he wasn't sure what was so funny about this. Ronald - now that a first-name basis was in order, but Monty was only willing to go so far with this - lay on his side as he looked up at them with a mad tomato blush.

"Aw, I don't believe it! Again!" he said, mostly to his friend.

"What now, Stoppable?" Fiske growled when he saw the young man on the ground, having tripped over a tree root and didn't see it coming. He remained as he was, but a naked-looking rodent poked its head from his pocket that Monty had to deepen his frown. A... _naked mole_ rat, and he was seeing this just now. How hilarious, he had to say. And this creature seemed to have the same intelligence Mila and Chippy possessed, for it looked up at him with an inquiring look in its black eyes.

Stoppable struggled to stand while attempting to hide what he said loud and clear. "I tore my pants."

He could not suppress a blink of surprise. Of all things -! "Y-you tore your pants," he repeated, the urge to laugh escaping him. He slapped a gloved hand over his mouth just as Kimberly shook her head and could hardly keep her giggles in. Soon, laughter filled the air, well-deserved after a near-death experience.

It was safe to say that Ron Stoppable being the one to suffer from his pants on numerous occasions was the only thing about the lad to make Monty Fiske double over without spite.

The day was just drawing to a close, blanketing them in color, and they were all heading out of here by the time night fell. His family's charter was prepared to bring the idol back to London to the excitement of Dr. Reeves...but mostly for himself, and warily to Bates.

"If it won't be a problem, Lord Fiske," Kimberly said, "could you drop us off over Middleton?" He gave her a slight smile; she'd done him a great deal today. How could he refuse her request?

~o~

"So, girl, spill!" Monique shrieked when Kim plopped down on the couch, exhausted after the freefall from Lord Fiske's family charter. "How did it go?" She turned from her desk and the latest fashion sketches, the widest grin ever present on her face.

Oh, she wanted to just sleep the day away since it was perfect timing she had no classes till later in the afternoon, and a test to study for. "Well, I did go in with him..."

"Oooh, ooh, you went in _alone_ with him!"

The redhead bolted up and held a hand up. "Whoa, slow down, nothing inappropriate!" she exclaimed as it was obvious what the hint was, then cleared her throat. "So, we braved a floor that picked up and rolled after us like a tidal wave, and at the last minute we were forced to choose between three different doorways in front of us...and the left one which was closest happened to lead us straight for the chamber of the jade icon."

Monique whirled completely around, gawking, eyes popping from her face like softballs. "Kim, seriously, a rolling floor and trapped doorways, and it was that easy to get the artifact?" she demanded in disbelief. Kim laughed.

"No, it wasn't easy. Because as soon as I grabbed the statue, the room began to flood, but I got us both out."

And what she forgot to mention but eventually got it out: the floor of the tomb collapsed to reveal a vast underground ocean that would have swallowed them whole. Now her roommate doubled over with gasping laughter. "Now, that was some way to spend the day with the man you always wanted to meet," Monique said. "So, mission accomplished, but after that?"

Okay, how do you describe it without blushing? But it wasn't like she sat anywhere close to Lord Fiske on the way home - tempting and guilty as it sounded to herself. He had been kind enough to drop her and Ron off over Middleton, even stood by them when they suited up with the parachutes. He'd looked so giddy with excitement like he had been when they recovered the statue, which was now going to the museum. He had said he would get to work on the location of the fourth and final icon, but who knew how long that would take.

There might be a chance he would call her help again, but she wouldn't get her hopes up too high.

"He might call you again," Monique insisted, eyes shining. "How can he not? He obviously gave the hint. Didn't he say so himself?"

Kim nodded, sitting up and crossing her legs beneath her on the sofa, putting her knuckles beneath her cheeks in thought. "Yeah, he said he might, but it's best to not daydream too much about something with half a chance of happening. And right now, I have a test to think about."

"And what about that party invitation? I'll bet my money he'll send you one soon. There's no way a gentleman makes a promise and breaks it." Kim snorted to that even though a smile tugged one corner of her mouth. She wanted to insist it was too good to be true to actually happen...but she was proven wrong.

Five days later, the invitation came through, and Lord Monty Fiske personally invited her and Ron to London for the weekend to come.

"See, I told you!" Monique said later on when she and Kim invited Tara over for a girls' night. "He invited you!"

"Me _and_ Ron," Kim corrected, feeling the faraway gape form in her gut. Both girls noticed this, and Tara was the one to break the ice, pushing her loose light curls over her ears.

"He doesn't like Ron," she said knowingly, biting her bottom lip. Monique's eyebrows shot up nearly to her hairline as she remembered the additional details to the story the redhead told her.

Kim groaned but resisted hitting her forehead. "He and Ron don't get along all because Ron is afraid of monkeys. That will make things hard for them now that this party across the ocean is coming up." Yep, and who knew if they would spend the majority of the dinner either avoiding each other or looking at each other the way they did. Just before they cleared to take off in the Fiske family plane, they'd managed to steer clear of close contact beside each other. Like two magnets that did not belong together but had no choice but to stick by fate's hand. She shuddered at the comparison.

For her part, she was looking forward to seeing him again.

~o~

"I must say, Dr. Reeves was really persistent," Bates was telling him as he served the tea in the evening. "She persuaded you very well to send out that invitation you promised Kim Possible."

"Indeed," Monty said, accepting his cup and blowing the surface, sending the steam in the opposite direction purely out of habit. He'd been adamant, however, because how often did he get a young woman who wasn't after him for his fortune to come to an event celebrating the latest of his greatest findings? Part of the reason was because he was not going to take all of the credit for himself.

It wasn't the first time Lord Fiske had help, but usually he had help from the staff once in awhile when he didn't really ASK for it himself - but in terms of the jade monkeys coming into the picture, he couldn't count on anyone in the museum because of his own reasons. But then fate stepped in and suggested he call _her..._

"I confess I am looking forward to it," Monty said after a sip, the mild burn followed by sweetness clearing his thoughts. He smiled before he let it fade. "However, a part of me wonders why I had to insist she bring that monkey phobic friend of hers along." He allowed his lip to curl. Of course, he asked himself that question; if Possible couldn't be without her sidekick and childhood friend, then he supposed he couldn't let her come alone just to feel safe. Stoppable rubbed him in the wrong way besides the fact he greatly feared all simians in existence, but Fiske had no means to physically eradicate him. He was not a murderer for the sake of thrills.

Bates stepped back with a bow of the head. "Let's only hope that he won't be any trouble when they come, milord," he said. "I'm sure Miss Possible will do her best to straighten him out..."

Monty snorted and looked into the fire. "Please, don't try to make me feel better, Bates. Obsessive fear is not quelled that easily."

"Nor is obsessive pursuit."

He whirled around the corner of the chair at the sound of the voice that surprised him but startled poor Bates who nearly dropped the tea service; he hurried to set it down on the nearby table and shifted to stand beside his master at the sight of the figure in black which stepped out from the shadows. But Monty smiled, standing and clasping both his hands behind his back, free of his gloves that he donned only during the day...but when night fell, his secrets were exposed to those he truly trusted in this castle.

"You could have alerted Bates, my old friend," he said casually, but the visitor snorted.

"The way of the ninja is stealth, as you know good and well, Montgomery."

"Indeed it is. But why have you come at a time like this?"

The figure remained standing where he was. "You have one more statue to find, but this is the last time I will warn you. If you bring them together, the power will change you altogether. Remember what happened to the last man?"

Monty folded his arms across his chest and lifted his chin. "We discussed this a long time ago. That was thousands of years ago," he snapped.

"Yes, but thousands of years changes nothing of the present day. There is only one who will obtain the power with nobler purposes, but not one who seeks it with his own reasons."

He gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes at the shadowed form of his old, trusted ally from across the globe. "Why do you think I was born the way I was, hmm? Why do you think my dear mother had put the weight on my shoulders and insisted that I finish what she and my father started?" he demanded, nodding for Bates to leave them alone as he knew he could handle this alone. "Do you believe I will go mad from this that I spent my entire life searching in order to add more meaning to myself?"

There was a collected yet agitated sigh. "Know I am only looking out for your well-being, for the sake of our families. Your father met his demise as did mine, so I do not wish for the same to befall on either of our parts."

Monty exhaled and relaxed. "As do I, my friend." He had lowered his gaze to the floor before raising it again only to see the figure vanished back into the shadows, leaving his castle.

 **Even though Ron is known to accidentally rip or lose his pants on occasion, there was one certain similar scene from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, season six episode two, "Rocks and Shoals", that worked its way in when Ron's infamous accident occurs. XD**

 **Who do you suppose the identity of Monty Fiske's mystery lifelong oriental friend is? :D The mystery is just building up.**


	6. In Heat

**Assuming Kim has to still be a cheerleader in college, it was difficult to picture what routine she and her mates were doing at this time, so I couldn't have done this without the help of daccu65.**

Chapter Six

In Heat

Kim stood today in front of her squad mates of Middleton U; the rest were organized into three groups of cheerleaders - one group behind her, and one each to her left and right. Kim waved to the drummer; this was a run-through. Tomorrow they would practice with the entire band. And with the drummer setting the beat, the squad went into action.

One girl from each of the groups launched herself forward with a front handspring while the other two did a short dance routine, arms up then down, then up again. Kim did a backflip, going completely over the group behind her. Turning, she did a series of backwards handsprings to the audience's right. The three girls who had originally done the handsprings came together, while the six girls now in the middle rank dropped into a kneeling position. The three girls - Tara included - forward did backflips, each landing with one foot on one of the two girls behind her. The six supports jumped to their feet, allowing the three on their shoulders to leap higher into the air, spinning completely around to face the audience again.

Now the six supporting girls crouched again, lowering the ones on their shoulders just enough so that Kim could perform and double-flip, then land on the shoulders of the middle girl, with the two on the sides extending their hands to help support. The low-tiered girls now stood, leaving Kim on the shoulders of her fellow cheerleaders who were standing on those of the others. The drumming paused long enough for the cheer.

"Middleton U! Middleton U!"

The six girls forming the bottom rank crouched slightly and straightened in unison, giving enough of a spring to allow Kim to jump straight up and perform a double-front flip. The three middle-rank girls each flipped, the two to the sides forward, and the one in the middle backwards. Kim came down from the middle and the two middle lower girls caught her and set her on her feet.

Now that all the cheerleaders were on the ground, they formed a forward and rear rank of five each. While the front rank swayed left, the rear rank swayed right.

"Alright, that was great," Kim said as soon as practice ended. It felt like the good old days to still be head cheerleader, as if it never seemed to end. Some things never changed, and it made her smile. "Big game in two more weeks, and let's look forward to it!"

Her fellow cheerleaders could not disagree with her on that. Middleton versus Lowerton - who could miss that?

Just as she was leaving practice, there was also Ron, the quarterback himself, sweating like a pig by the grand finish, with Tara going up to him and not caring in the slightest. See, that was true love: not caring about the littlest nastiest of things.

Tomorrow she and Ron left for England, and who other to pick them up than Lord Fiske's personal charter? The idea just made Ron snort, and he could never stop his personal opinions either. "I still say he's bad road, Kim," he'd said after they returned home. She only exhaled and shook her head.

She was tired of fighting with him over Lord Fiske. Now it seemed she found herself on opposite sides; the nobleman himself praising her and holding her in his favor, whilst her lifelong best friend distrusted him immensely. Well, she had to confess to herself, Fiske was a little...mysterious, because what could she know personally about him? It wasn't like she wanted to know if he was married publicly. As far as it was known, he never once wed or even had a lady companion. He must not be the type to court, yet the ever-present naïve side of Kim saw the way he looked at her - but a look didn't really mean anything if they had only just met. And the way her body reacted when he held her close as she pulled them out of the flooding chamber...

Kim shook her head. No, she tried to tell herself, this wasn't a romance in the stories she loved. This was real life, and Lord Monty Fiske was interested in her professionally and nothing more.

But even that did not seem to stop her racing pulse when he continued to follow her within her psyche at every turn.

~o~

He was at the airport, on his landing pad when the charter touched down, and he clasped his gloved hands behind his back as he was prone to do. The sweat broke out from his pores and soaked into the cloth. Overhead, the silvery gray clouds released minimal rays of sunlight, as an omen that he was getting an additional ray of hope in his path. He smiled at the sign before redirecting his attention to the opening of the landing and descending ladder.

And just what he expected: the two people he invited descended, wearing their gear and garments like they did in Brazil. Young adventurers prepared for anything, anytime and anywhere, just like he.

Jade eyes made contact with his icy sapphire ones, making him alight but otherwise rigid in his posture. Momentarily in his distraction, he thought back to when he returned to London with the idol, Bates in tow, and Reeves was mildly disappointed when the young heroine hadn't come along with him. "I couldn't just prevent her from returning to her life, Joanne," Monty had told her. "She asked for the drop-off, and I gave it to her and her friend."

She'd chuckled. "Of course. There's still a drop of humanitarian in you yet, Monty," she'd said, making him grimace. Simians and their natural habitats were one thing on his list of philanthropy, but humans were a conflict because of how he was not completely like them.

He never usually gave in right away, but he supposed then was an exception. "I never did properly thank you for recommending Miss Possible."

"I knew you would find it in your stubborn self to thank me," Reeves told him with another laugh. "You look just like your father - but you are in so many ways your mother."

Monty had only closed his eyes and inhaled through his nose, saying nothing.

"Lord Fiske, it's good to see you!" Kim called out to him, pulling him from his reverie. Her fiery hair was pulled back into a ponytail, surprising him but admiring. "Thanks for the invite."

"It was the least I could do since you helped me acquire the third icon," he answered, taking her equally gloved hand into his and shook it. He was tempted to once again say "monkey" in the name, but Stoppable was there. He did not wish for another argument on this occasion. He did not wish for any kind of trouble today or tomorrow even.

But, he promised himself, if the young fool so much as opened his mouth, then hell would pay.

"It was no big," she answered, still smiling. It seemed her smile was much brighter than the sun above attempting to fully come out from its charcoal blankets. "The rolling floors, the collapsing watery grave after we took the statue - it was all just a minor setback."

"So hilarious." Monty chortled as they started walking; behind him, he could have sworn he heard Stoppable talking to his pet rodent. Said something along the lines of his laugh sounding more...monkey than man. He ignored the boy for the time being. "You really are much calmer in the face of danger, Kim Possible. You don't seem frightened of anything that crosses your path."

"Neither do you, Lord Fiske."

"Yeah, uh huh," Ronald piped up much to his irritation. Now he was beginning to regret inviting the buffoon along. He should have made the invitation personally to Possible herself. "So, if Your Lordship was not afraid, how come -" She whirled around and silenced him with a look, but he wasn't done. "What, KP? He could have gotten that thing himself if he wanted to!" he insisted.

He could barely contain the snarl of agitation that drew both their attentions, even worried Bates clearly who had to lean up and whisper, "Don't lose it, milord." Monty wanted to snap, but he restrained himself and coolly answered the loud-mouthed young man who clearly had not grown up no matter how many times he would follow the much stronger lady around the world.

"Mr. Stoppable," he stated frigidly, "it wasn't my original intention to call upon Miss Possible. My dear friend whose granddaughter fancies her activities and wondrous tales of excitement recommended that I acquire some extra help due to the prior adventure in which I was nearly killed when I obtained the second monkey statue in India. Spikes and a collapsing tunnel - I trust this is good enough?" He narrowed his eyes at the younger man who returned the glare. "Now, then, if that is all, I should spare us both further humiliation by informing you that I shall give all further communication to Miss Possible directly."

The subject was closed as they all made way for the car Bates took charge of, ready to take them both to the castle for the celebration.

~o~

Just what she needed: another slowly heating confrontation between her best friend and their client over the littlest of things. But it was typical Ron: he had his mind and instincts on one thing and stubbornly never let it pass that easily. She had to suppress a biting remark.

In the car, she sat between the two men - Ron on her left side and Fiske on the other, but neither looked at each other ever since Fiske frostily said that all communication between them would be no more, that it would be just him and her for the sake of avoiding a heated outburst. Half of her was relieved, but the other half was embarrassed because Ron couldn't get a grip.

She decided she ought to break the ice. "My lord, maybe you can tell us who else will be at the dinner," she offered, finally bringing a smile to his face and causing him to look at her. To see him in his long black coat, powerful and patiently awaiting their arrival - or should she say _her_ arrival? - and welcoming her without even a hint of ulterior motives.

What could he have wanted of her help that he hadn't told her?

Kim shook her head. No, she wouldn't let Ron get to her. Ron was her best friend, and she never doubted him except a few times before she'd been proven wrong - but this time with a man she worshipped for a long time, she wasn't sure what to think other than to trust him. By him, she meant Lord Fiske himself.

"Oh, it won't be vast, if that is what you are wondering," he told her, "other than Dr. Joanne Reeves, the one who runs the museum and recommended you to me, and perhaps a couple of our trusted staff members who I tolerate only because of her..." She raised an eyebrow before letting it drop; by the way it sounded, it seemed like he didn't get along with every one of his colleagues at the museum save for Dr. Reeves.

She swallowed. She could not help but wonder if he would like the way she dressed...

Or maybe that wasn't her major worry. Just the fact she was meeting the people who ran the British Museum, people Lord Fiske worked with...

She might be thinking too much about this. She wasn't usually this nervous about anything. Taking a few deep breaths, she calmed herself down before she realized Fiske was speaking again. "Kimberly, are you afraid?" He blinked once as if trying to read her right, making her blush and lower her eyes.

"Sorry. I was just thinking. I've never thought about the fact that you lived in a...castle," Kim said quickly. The invitation had mentioned the word "castle", giving away that he lived more grandly than she thought he did. She knew he had a title and land, but this was more than she expected. She'd been to a real castle once or twice, but now she might end up staying the night in one as well...and without shame, she would say this was exciting for her. But it was a dismay for Ron.

"I seldom have guests over anymore, unless it is actually something worth celebrating for," Fiske said, surprising her. All her life she thought it was traditional that rich folks in every culture would abide by said traditions and have customary celebrations whether they liked it or not. The fact Lord Fiske almost never enjoyed these things - it marked him as preferring to keep to himself.

He must love his work more than anything else, including anything fun and recreational. Despite his charm and mannerisms, his fame and accomplishments, he apparently lacked any free time and fun to have. She might just be assuming, but the hints were there. It made her sad.

Ron glared at him but said nothing; he must have decided to keep his yap shut for her sake, and it made her relieved again. Kim found herself looking ahead and seeing Bates behind the wheel, swallowing and wishing he could say something. She almost felt bad for him, too.

It had been a few hours' drive outside London, and when they finally arrived at Fiske Castle, a rainfall began to pour. English weather was unpredictable, and the best month of the entire year for warmth and sunshine was July, whilst winter was a brutal chill and with rare blizzards. When Kim found herself looking out the window past Ron, sharing the same expression, she was taken aback by what she saw with him. Rufus popped out of his master's pocket and shrieked.

Lord Fiske's ancestral estate was big and grand - though not in an overtly lavish sense, but the fact it embodied isolation and the gloom to match the weather, there was hardly any life that made it all the more desolate, not just the fact it was located outside London, hidden within forestry save for the topmost towers. If it wasn't for the loneliness surrounding it, it would have been something out of a storybook.

"Welcome to my humble home," the master himself announced, his playful tone a cheery contrast to the atmosphere. But with the unsettling sensations came the thrill of excitement as it was when she would leave on missions. This new one didn't involve taking down the bad guy and then freefalling back home.

~o~

"Have the rooms been prepared, Bates?" he had to ask one more time when they were all safely inside the castle, greeted with warmth. If these two were going to have dinner with him and his colleagues celebrating the arrival of the third jade monkey, the least he could do was to have them stay the night here instead of troubling them with traveling back into the capital or the nearest small town with a dowdy inn.

"Yes, milord. Miss Possible, Mr. Stoppable, if it won't be trouble, your rooms have been prepared for your stay for the night."

"Aw, we _are_ really staying the night here, are we, KP?" Ronald whined.

She refused to even look at him. "Ron, stop complaining. Yes, we are." She had been rather hesitant when she agreed to this, but Monty had insisted. He could allow visitors, rare times they were, when he deemed it appropriate.

"The both of you are the guests of honor at my insistence and that of Dr. Reeves," Monty told them with a smile, though in his mind, it was truly Kim Possible who held the honor when her sidekick only came to their aid at the last minute. "There is a storm coming when the night falls that I doubt you both will be able to depart immediately afterwards."

"It's no big, Lord Fiske," she said, making him laugh. As much as he appreciated her respect for him with the use of his title, it was beginning to grow weary on him.

"And Kimberly - perhaps it's time you start calling me Monty from now on."

Blast the bumbling fool! "Oh, now you tell her to call you by your first name." All three of them, though Bates only settled on turning his head halfway to watch from the side, whirled to heatedly settle on the rude youth. His mouth truly had no filter. He was by far dense as a rock.

She was about to open her mouth again when he decided he should take care of this for her. "Stoppable," he hissed, "you try my patience. I've tolerated you long enough and your disrespect of my passion and profession, but I am giving tonight the last chance for you. If I so much as hear you utter one disgraceful word to me, I shall send you on your way to the nearest inn by yourself and see how long you can last without Miss Possible!"

His wide brown eyes and slack jaw satisfied him as the answer as he knew he got to him. And Kim, his trusted friend, smirked to one corner that she didn't have to deal with another word about a man she was too willing to help. "Thank you," she whispered to him, and he could only smile graciously at her without directly telling her welcome.

However, it did not stop Ronald's cowering at the sight of the various money paintings on the walls as they passed on each level before they reached the floor of guest rooms. "Dinner will be at seven, but Dr. Reeves and the others will arrive at six-thirty," Bates told them both as he assisted with taking their bags for them. That gave them an hour to freshen up, but maybe the lady would have another talk to her suspicious friend. That was not Fiske's problem to deal with, but he was confident that he silenced the buffoon if he knew what was good for him. He turned his attention to the young lady herself.

"I shall see you then, Kim Possible."

~o~

Dinner at seven, guests arriving at six-thirty, and it was five-thirty. An hour to go. She stood in her own room given to her by the master himself, dazed at what she was seeing and knowing this WAS too good to be true. This was more than what she could have ever wanted for herself.

The chandelier overhead was ravishing, opulent and gold with so many lights to give the room life. And was it her imagination, or was the bed actually fit for a _queen?_ It was sprawled with fabrics of luxurious red jacquard, with golden scrolling vines and diamond-patterned sections. Red gauze curtains draped from the four posters around. On either side, atop each mahogany dresser, was a lamp shaded with crystals. She was actually tempted to slump into that chair by the window, indulge in the cushions patterned the same as the bedcovers...

Oh, God, this was too much!

Kim took off her gloves as she brought her bag over to the bed. Her dress, shoes and jewelry were waiting inside. Her skin tingled with heat. To be alone for an hour in this overwhelming environment, but only for a single night. She and Ron experienced these things before, but never to completely enjoy this because it wouldn't last. Just do the job and then go home. She had no regrets saving the world in her life, but someday she would have to retire - except if she did that too soon, then what would become of any excitement that would be offered to her?

When she came across the adjoined bathroom, she was struck by the ivory and gold atmosphere, the sheer modern luxury in this old-fashioned place. And to stand in the glass shower made her relax and turn into goo that she wanted to really melt forever before reality would kick in, and she finished cleaning up, then put her hair up in an elegantly pinned bun that you couldn't see the pins very well.

Her dress was reminiscent of something that you would usually see on the red carpet, but it was simply elegant. Merlot colored, it had a mesh neck and shoulders, subtly beaded there and at the waist. Her shoes were multi-strapped two-and-a-half-inch heels matching the tone of her dress, and from her ears hung diamond halos sparkling even from far away like stars in her fiery hair. She finished off the look with dark eyeliner and a soft gold shadow, as well as her cherry-flavored lip gloss. She just hoped Lord Fiske might like this look of her...

It was so hard now to just remain on track that this was not personal.

"Hey, KP - oh, you look great!" Ron was beaming when he saw her, and he stood wearing a crisp white collared shirt and jeans; she rolled her eyes. He didn't think too much on formality tonight and assumed it wouldn't be anything special. He caught her reaction. "Oh, sorry about this."

"Sorry as you were earlier?" she asked in annoyance, turning to walk in the other direction for the stairs. "When His Lordship threatened to throw you out?" She gave him a suggestive wink that made him cringe.

"Look, I meant well, but I don't know if you noticed yourself, but I caught the way he was looking at you."

Kim stopped just as they were halfway down the stoned steps which actually were not as difficult to walk on as they appeared to be. "I saw, too, but it's nothing. He's a gentleman and won't come onto me, if that's what you mean," she said.

He scoffed, and Rufus mimicked him. "Kim, how many times do I have to try and tell you -?"

"Tell me what? That he's bad road? That he called me with ulterior motives? Okay, I'll admit I wasn't surprised he didn't think of me at first, but that doesn't mean anything fishy, Ron. And what's worse: if you get out of line one more time, he might ban you from coming here again. Do you even want that?"

"Better to stay away from him and this monkey-crawling place." He gave one last look at the latest creepy painting on the wall before hurrying to join her as they finished going down the stairs.

"I'm done with this, Ron," Kim said, exasperated. "We're here to just have a good time and talk to the people in charge of the museum - people he works with. Can you at least be on your best behavior, just for me? Please?" She looked at him with pleading eyes and her famous puppy dog pout that made him acquiesce.

"Fine. Just for you."

He left it at that, but they were far from over. Just how was she going to have to get it through his head? She sighed. Maybe when they got back home, she would talk to Tara and have her get him to cool off somehow. She'd done enough of what she could.

"Oh, you have made it!" the master of the castle himself exclaimed when they finally reached him in the main foyer and surrounded with a small group of finely garbed people, one of whom Kim assumed was Dr. Joanne Reeves - the one who had recommended her to Lord Fiske. Despite what she told Ron, there was a small part of her that was a little disappointed that he hadn't been the first to turn to her. But what had been done had been done, and here she was with him, helped him, and that was all that mattered.

She felt her breath hitch when she took in the sight of him, with the crisp, cream-colored shirt and the sleeves rolled down to his wrists, hands covered with gloves still, and the dark trousers tight and matching with boots. To even take this in along with the hair slicked off to one side, his smile sincere and shining, reaching his eyes. Her heart lifted at the sight of him - and even more when he spoke directly to her.

"Miss Possible...you are finer than any precious amber in existence."

Was it her imagination, or did the liquid fire in her body erupt when he took her hand into his and then placed a brief but sparking kiss on the back? She could not even tear her eyes away as she found herself ensnared by his intense blues...but then he let her hand drop before guiding her over, Ron begrudgingly in tow, and introduced them to Dr. Reeves and the others.

 **The moment where Fiske snaps back that he hopes his answer satisfied as to why he called for Kim's help was kinda like what happened before he disguised himself as the ninja in the episode events, in "The Monkey's Valet" by VampireNaomi (one of the greatest fics ever written), only this time it was involving a friend's recommendation as opposed to his lone decision which worries Bates greatly. And we all know where that leads.**

 **Whoo, Lord Fiske, you really talked down Ron - who now seems more determined than ever to see what the mysterious explorer might be hiding about himself that Kim, his best friend, can't see. ;D Suspension...**


	7. A Night in Fiske Castle

**I honestly didn't get the chance to find out how old Ron was exactly when he suffered at Camp Wannaweep, but I hope eleven years old was close enough. After all, his simian fears are vital to his distrust of Lord Monty Fiske.**

Chapter Seven

A Night in Fiske Castle

How much monkey was one man supposed to take?!

And how _crazy_ was the man who loved them?!

KP really did not see what Ron Stoppable was seeing, and he knew it because of his own experiences with monkeys - primarily with the Camp Wannaweep chimp when he was eleven years old. That thing just so much as went wild when all he did was try and get along; he never figured out what he did wrong when the monster decided to go wild and trash the cabin, bite and scratch Ron, nearly tear him apart...

He might have died if the counselors hadn't come at the sound of the commotion and gave him the best medical treatments the hellish place had to offer.

Monkey paintings...otherworldly screeches in the distance...

Ron felt like he was in a horror movie - an old Gothic picture, to be exact, when he could hardly keep himself from trembling and clinging as closely as possible to Kim. Suppose a ghostly monkey could jump out at any hour of the night to follow, or maybe when she wasn't looking. Maybe if not a phantom, maybe the master of this entrapment himself.

 _"I've tolerated you long enough and your disrespect of my passion and profession, but I am giving tonight the last chance for you."_

He sniffed. If ol' Monty boy thought he could talk to him like that in front of his best friend, then he had a good gut idea to sneak around with Rufus and find any proof to Kim. Fiske was trouble and he knew it. But a verbal confrontation would only make things worse than before.

 _"If I so much as hear you utter one disgraceful word to me, I shall send you on your way to the nearest inn by yourself and see how long you can last without Miss Possible!"_

"Yeah, you just thought she can make it without me, didn't you?" he muttered bitterly to himself as he and Rufus returned to their room later that night after the dinner was finally over. What could he describe of the fancy food that ranged from lamb to seafood, to duck and even steak? The seasoned vegetables? All of it was irresistible, and Rufus had the time of his life, ignoring even the disapproving glance of the cold-eyed Lord Fiske who was no doubt plotting ways to get rid of him early.

"Rufus, buddy," he said as they both settled down for the night, him changing into sleepwear, "he really thinks he can get rid of me that easily just because I speak the truth?"

The naked mole rat huffed and folded his arms across his chest. "Yeah!" he spat, sticking his tongue out in the air, wishing the old creep was there.

Tomorrow they would head back home, and he just hoped they wouldn't have to deal with Fiske again - but he couldn't stop shaking away the hurt he'd seen in Kim. He knew he'd done that to her, his best friend since their early lives began, but his motivations were the right ones. He didn't like the way the old man - old by age difference, even though Fiske was still young in a sense - looked at her, nor did he like the man's passion for all things simian. Monkeys and apes were all vicious animals that took what you did the wrong way; how could Darwin compare them to humans, anyway?

He knew tonight would not be fun besides the feast itself; of course Kim got the attention as did His Lordship. They spoke to the museum staff about how they sprung the traps and barely escaped with their lives, but the statue was intact and ready to join two of its companions. One more to go, and Ron knew it was another monkey statue. He could not resist a shudder that drew baffled eyes, but Kim still would not look at him, and Fiske himself only smirked in amusement. A part of Ron wished he could wipe that smugness off somehow.

Maybe he could slip a chance tonight when everyone was deeply asleep.

Rufus was worried when he spoke this idea as they settled down for the night. "Uh oh!" He covered his eyes and shook his head.

"I know, I know," he agreed, using his hands beneath his head as an additional pillow, "it's frightening. Especially when we are in a big old castle crawling with monkey pictures at every turn...and the master himself can always catch us red-handed." He shivered to think about what Fiske would do when - or if - he found out that one of his "guests" had been snooping around his privacy, and no doubt what it would do to Kim. But it had to be a risk worth taking.

So they agreed that when a later hour came, they would sneak out and scavenge the darkness of Fiske Castle.

~o~

"OH, what an evening!" Kim exclaimed as she settled into the cozy, luxurious bed for the night. For its opulence, it was very comfortable that she could go to sleep then and there, but she was wide awake and with so much going through her mind. Out of everything to talk about with the staff, including the kind Dr. Reeves, there had been a question she may or may not have expected to ask.

"Have you a next book in mind, Miss Possible?" Even that had piqued Lord Fiske's - _Monty's_ \- attention, and she'd swallowed.

"I don't know," she'd answered carefully. "I really am trying to think of a new one, but I don't have any inspiration as of lately."

However, now that she lay in her bed, still wearing the robe she never found in her to take off - an exquisite velvet robe with richly hued blossoms, tied with a satin sash of ivory - her mind was more than restless when the seed of the question was planted and slowly began to grow, along with her latest adventure involving her idol from her teenaged life alongside her, and maybe a new leading lady who was not Kathryn could take this place and have a tall, dark and handsome man who was every girl's dream involved in her adventure...

~o~

"Coast clear," the little guy announced as he poked his head out into the hallway and ran back to his master. Their flashlight had a change of batteries that had been a stroke of good luck on their side; never did Ron think they would come to this conclusion before they got to this decrepit place.

Decrepit? Well, what could he say? The cold air, the creeping shadows, the eerie silence that could betray them at any moment and reveal either the lord himself or even the valet at his master's disposal...it was everything out of a horror movie. His flesh crawled over his muscles and bones, sensitizing his nerves in every part. Poor Rufus clung to him in his pocket, keeping his head out and clutching the edge close to him as if it were his blanket, giving him a small amount of protection.

His feet were bare, so no slippers could slow him down in his steps, but the stairs themselves which took them down to another level added further chills.

"Jeez, Rufus, what are we in?" he whispered, careful to not excite any attention. But if they both heard a noise, he would duck behind whatever was available. "Dracula's castle? You'd have to have bats in the air trying to get in your hair, the calls of ghosts you can't see..."

Should he add scary paintings of death? In this case, it involved _monkeys_. His teeth chattered with the rest of his body, trying his best to not look at any of the paintings on the walls as he journeyed on, suddenly finding himself fascinated by the sights of the suits of armor from medieval times, telling him that Lord Montgomery Fiske's heritage must have dated back to that era. Even there were aspects of history Ron Stoppable liked to read about on occasion.

The flashlight radiated off the silver armor, blinding him a little before he blinked the spots away. "Okay, Rufus, which room do we start? We can't risk finding the master's bedroom, because if the old chap finds out, this gets back to Kim, and she might not trust me again for a long while..."

"Eek!" the little buddy agreed and sank further in his hiding place.

These doors were carved and boarded definitely from ancient times, and he wondered how they managed to be polished to fit the modern ages. Ron really didn't want to know everything; all he wanted was to prove to Kim that - "Oh, score!" he said excitedly to Rufus when they came across a partially opened door - but when they shone the light in, disappointment washed over them both.

This room wasn't what he expected, however his interest was piqued when his eyes beheld the sight of an _armory._ He couldn't really tell which weapon originated from which country, but they had to be either African, Indian or Asian. Monty boy really liked anything having to do with combat, anything historical, but was he really that hard-working? Rich guys really stood by and let others do everything for them, so for all he knew, His Lordship must have simply stood beside Kim when he asked for her help, and only aided her when he saw fit. It made Ron snort with disgust.

"Kim really is in over her head if she's having...thoughts about him," he decided aloud, half to himself and half to Rufus who was listening to him as he always did. "Sure, he's tall, dark, rich and handsome, and a famous scholar and explorer - but all of this? There's no way he got every inch of these weapons and antiquities on his own. He must have just used his title and status to get goggle-eyed attention, not to mention his good looks..."

They were leaving the armory when it seemed their luck changed. Across the hallway was a cracked door, and maybe this was their last chance. If nothing, then this search had all been for nothing. "Yeah," Rufus agreed when he said this.

"Yeah, buddy, we've been out for too long. If old boy or his servant dude catch us, any lie we give to cover our tracks will cause everything to blow in the air."

However, it was this room which they struck gold: it was the study. "Oh, boy, I think we made it!" he said excitedly before he heard his own vocal chords rise a little higher than they should have. He cleared his throat. "Booyah," he said softly, laughing with the naked mole rat as they ventured into this obviously sacred place for the renowned archaeologist.

The place was sprawled with books all over, but he couldn't really find any interest in discovering what the man was fascinated with as of lately, yet he caught a few titles in on the sides facing him, raising his eyebrow. Rufus hopped from his pocket and began to crawl over the study desk.

What could you expect of a man who studies the ancient world? But he frowned when certain titles had "magic" in them, and a handful or more - "Oh, how can life do this to me?" he moaned. "How can it put me under the same roof as the man who loves what I hate?"

He paused when his attention was directed to an opened old book in front of him, showing a ninja in black and in a martial arts pose, but upon reading a little bit of the old-looking text, Ron suppressed a shriek when the words showed what slipped his lips. "Monkey Kung Fu! Agh, old Monty boy is _obsessed_! Monkey this, monkey that - monkey, _monkey,_ MONKEY!" He could not take another minute in this place, disappointed that their chance had been wasted...

...but then his little friend interrupted him when he seemed to have found something. Maybe not what they would have hoped, but the title raptured them both: _The Arabian Nights._

"Ooh, Rufus! The days of our youth! Aladdin, Ali Baba, Sinbad -" he was saying, forgetting about reality and instead indulging in their favorite stories, thinking about slipping this in their room for the night and return it before they left, before His Lordship found out - "Oh, God, disgusting!"

"Bah! Phooey!" Rufus gagged, turning his face away.

What they found in the page marked by a royal blue silk book marker was nothing like they expected. The couple in the artsy illustration were garbed as the culture of the title, but unexpectedly was them sitting before each other, the graphic image of the man's privates connecting with the female's - and add in the fact there was no pubic hair... "Dude, ew!" He quickly closed that book and squeezed his eyes shut, his flashlight in his grip and threatening to slip. Poor Rufus even had a hard time keeping the image out. "This is so not what I thought! What does he do with this, huh? Does he beat himself off to it or something when he's not reading monkey history?!"

"Actually, Mr. Stoppable, Lord Fiske has not read that copy of ancient erotica in years."

He actually screamed so loud he dropped his flashlight and forgot all about it - even the fact it opened and let the batteries fall out - and held the book close to his rapidly thundering heart as he and Rufus were met face-to-face with Bates the valet and his lantern. The man's eyes glittered with amusement even though his mustached mouth was set in a line of disapproval, but also relieved he caught one of the guests before his master found out. Ron had never felt so embarrassed, fears forgotten. "Oh, uh - hi," he stuttered, running his free hand through his hair. "I'm so s-s-sorry. I couldn't sleep and thought I'd explore, but also tried to find a library if there was one -" His babbling was always out of control, a habit that never left him in maturity. "- and I found this place. This book I have just caught my attention I thought it was something else..."

The man's stern expression softened when he chuckled, then stepped aside, indicating they go immediately - and they both forgot about the abandoned flashlight.

"I must assure you, Mr. Stoppable, I know Lord Fiske better than anyone. I have helped raise him from birth, after all. You need not concern yourself with anything incriminating," Bates assured him, but despite the fact his nerves calmed a little, Ron could not shake off the fact there might be more than that. He still had that shiver up his spine.

~o~

She was up by the time the sun broke, feeling at peace and enjoying the tranquility and silence. Yet to wake up in this foreign bed and country apart from the surroundings she was used to - it was a good kind of strange that a small part of her wanted to live here...

Reality kicked in, and she slid out of the bed to shower and change back into her gear. She and Ron had a great time - well, her mostly - and now was time to go home. Their ride contacted by Wade would arrive in three hours.

But as soon as she was about to step on the first flight of stairs, she heard voices. Shouting. Accusations. Her blood chilled.

"...pray tell, explain why you were in my study last night, Stoppable?" Monty's voice was silky smooth, yet menacing as he bore down on her best friend who no doubt was glaring daggers back at him. Kim swallowed and put both hands over her racing heart. Ron - he - what did he do this time?! What was he doing in the... _study?!_

"Well, I couldn't sleep and just wanted to find something to read until I fell asleep. I couldn't find a library around, and I happened upon it by accident -"

Ron sounded like he really meant it, but Fiske wasn't convinced. "Oh, really? Then enlighten me on a suspicion of mine: did you, by any chance, snoop my ancient texts while you searched for some way to entertain yourself?" he hissed. "I find a flashlight and scattered batteries that tell me more than recreational reading took place. You were... _snooping_ around. Spying on me, are we? After I made it clear to you that I gave you one last chance, Ron Stoppable?"

Kim closed her eyes, feeling something tear at her inside. Ron had...he couldn't...but in her heart, she knew it was true. He was one of the boldest people she'd ever known, but the fact he dared to go late at night to nose through Monty Fiske's castle in an attempt to find something on him - it wounded her deeply that she knew she couldn't speak to him for awhile when they got back to Middleton.

What hurt most was believing that she was no longer welcome because of Ron - and what the angered nobleman stated next sent her spiraling internally.

"As of now, when you and Miss Possible leave, you are forbidden from ever returning to my humble home."

 **Ron's journey at night with Rufus through the castle was inspired by many Gothic horror tales from my younger days, and anyone else who is a fan of those stories, it was a pleasure. :) In addition, when he and his naked mole rat buddy find that erotic textbook, it was also based off a similar scene in Bram Stoker's "Dracula" (the 1992 movie with Gary Oldman as the vampire count).**

 **Oh, God, that did hurt, didn't it? :( Ron tried doing what he believed was the right thing, and it cost him and possibly his best friend. What will happen now?**


	8. Halloween

Chapter Eight

Halloween

He was usually up at dawn, Chippy and Mila safely hidden away so the buffoon did not ever find them. He decided to just follow his routine before his guests would join him for breakfast and then be on their way - but when Fiske arrived at his study with his tea before any of the others awoke and found him, he was greeted with something at his feet that he nearly stumbled but regained his balance and looked down to see what it was.

A flashlight.

Someone had been in his sanctuary sometime during the night, and obviously forgot about it when they searched for whatever it was they were trying to look for. Fiske gritted his teeth as he could think of only _one_ person, knowing deep down who and why.

"Stoppable, you've pushed my buttons for the last time," he'd growled when he picked up the fallen tool as well as the scattered batteries that had escaped when its owner clumsily dropped it, telling him that he must have either heard someone coming - specifically Bates - or maybe his valet caught him and thought to take him away in time. However, if Bates purposefully kept this from his master, they were going to have a talk - which could not wait as he roared for his manservant and together, they charged for Stoppable's guest room, collecting himself together as calmly as he could make himself before calling for the unwelcomed guest himself and pulled him out into the hallway.

There might be a chance Kimberly could catch on, but that was beyond his control. She would learn of this sooner anyway. When he was done speaking and was certain the young fool wasn't going to come up with a better excuse other than recreational reading - his opened texts on the Mystical Monkey Power were living proof - Lord Fiske decided to say what had to be. "As of now, when you and Miss Possible leave, you are forbidden from ever returning to my humble home," he said coldly, folding his arms across himself as he glared down at the troublesome youth whose naked mole rat jumped out of his pocket and chattered angrily at him. "As for you, rodent, you should teach your master to respect other's privacy. I let you stay one night and this is how you both repay me."

"Lord Fiske!"

"Kimberly," he answered when she came to them both, inclining his head forward once, "forgive me for making this decision, but in the future, I won't allow him on my property if I have anything to say about it. Last night, Bates caught him trespassing in certain rooms he shouldn't have."

She nodded, the worry etched in her entire face. "I know, and even though it won't work anymore, I'm so sorry he did this." She glowered at her buffoon when he protested.

"Kim, are you serious?! This guy is beyond bad; he's a perverted monkey-obsessed -"

"Ron, enough!" she snapped, emerald eyes cold as ice. "You know what?" She put both hands on her hips. "I've had it with you and your attitude. Lord Monty Fiske has been nothing but courteous to us, and instead you go and throw it in his face. You were taught better, and I can't believe I'm saying this...but I agree with Monty and think it's best I come alone next time he needs my help."

His brown eyes bulged; Fiske had to suppress his smirk of triumph. He sputtered, darting back and forth as though he'd been stabbed in the back, between his best friend whom he thought would believe in him and the man he despised with a passion as much as the other did. "B-b-but, KP! You seriously -"

"She is serious, Ronald," Fiske stated, raising a gloved hand up, palm facing outwards. "You really should learn to mind yourself and keep any suspicions in check." The boy growled at him through his teeth, his rodent joining in. "Bates, get him out of my sight." He watched as his loyal servant obeyed with a single nod but didn't grab Stoppable by the arm as Fiske expected, only motioned with his hand to follow him. Ronald didn't stop there, instead turned and stuck his tongue out like an adolescent that made him exhale sharply with Miss Possible, whom he was left alone with.

"How many times can I apologize for him?"

Monty refused to look at her, instead continued to gaze where Bates and her rude friend vanished. "Apologies are futile, Kimberly. You did the best you could as did I, but it seems he knows no filter."

From the corner of his eye, he saw her straighten and clasp her hands behind her back. "Monty," she said slowly, "does this mean I am...forbidden, too?" Unspoken was the reminder of the fourth and final jade statue still out there that he looked at her with a gracious smile.

"His actions do not reflect on you. He is no longer welcome, but I promise you..." He reached out and placed a gloved hand on her cheek in spite of himself, causing her to gasp a little and lower her eyes. Even though his skin never made contact with hers, warmth coursed through his cells. "...my doors are always opened to welcome you at anytime."

Why was his heart beating faster than before when she finally looked at him hopefully, as if matching him in an instant?

Sadly, she and the ungrateful sidekick were gone not long after fasting on the breakfast made by Bates, and she bade good-bye - for now, in both their souls - to him before going ahead across the drawbridge, Stoppable begrudgingly following but no longer looking at him. For that, Monty was grateful. That insufferable fool would never be in his favor for his actions.

"You have allowed her to return anytime she was pleased, milord."

"Yes, Bates, I have. What of it?"

"Well, ahem..." The older, shorter man rubbed his hands together nervously. "I confess I was a tad surprised, given her friend almost ruined everything," he confessed, making Monty snort and roll his eyes.

"Yes, but do tell me why you did not tell me sooner, even if you both failed to notice the evidence I happened to find in time."

They were walking back into the castle when Bates spoke. "My lord, he didn't speak of any harm, and it was not like he pieced two and two together. After all, he isn't as clever as Miss Possible - other than the fact he merely suspects and can't find logical evidence," he said quickly.

Yes, absolutely, Monty had to agree. "Indeed. He hasn't figured it out other than the ancient texts being far from his field." He chuckled before it faded. "But the nerve to insult me! At least I shall never have to see him or speak to him again the next time I see her..."

"Oh, yes, thank you for bringing me back to Kim Possible, milord." By the way Bates said her name, it seemed he must be implying that his master had other...motives. This made Fiske blink.

"Bates, just what are you implying? Our relationship is purely professional!"

They stopped when Bates did the first move, then turned his whole body around to look up with his chin raised. "Yes, milord, but I've seen the way you both have looked at each other, and I have raised you with your dear mother, after all," he reminded Monty, bringing a fire to his cheeks. "I know the secrets of a man's heart when his soul has recognized the other's from a distance, no matter the circumstances..."

~o~

She and Ron did not speak to each other on the flight home, and they certainly didn't on the way back to the college. Instead, they went to their separate dorms, all the while feeling the turmoil in her very core.

How could Ron do this to her? He thought to creep around the castle without her knowledge, trying to get back at Lord Fiske - or maybe find something on him that turned out to be nothing at all, which told her that Monty Fiske was nothing like the bad road Ron said he was. And now the master of the castle had banned him from coming back!

She had to say she was so lucky to not be kicked out along with him, which she'd been afraid of. She couldn't bear the thought of her idol and client doing that to her - and it would crush her heart even more, since she knew it from the start.

Kim could not stop thinking about the way he'd touched her cheek when he assured her she was welcome back anytime she wanted, and he meant every word of his. Too good to be true...but it totally was. Her heart fluttered, beyond her control. She felt like a schoolgirl again, ignoring any warning signs and momentarily forgetting about the last boyfriend she had which turned out to be a total fake...

No, this couldn't be. After what happened with Eric, boys and men were off the charts for her, and with the episodes with Ron, she couldn't take any chances.

But just WHEN was there going to be a man she actually _liked_? Someone real, someone who looked at her and really cared for her?

She halted her thoughts there, too distracted now from the term paper that was due before the end of the month. Less than two weeks to go before Halloween. She and Ron had been home for barely a week, and it seemed he'd been avoiding her more than she'd been avoiding him. Was he... _helping_ her avoid him since he knew her well enough? Half of her was grateful while the other half was guilty. Her stomach rolled over with nausea that she wanted to throw up here and now instead of making it for the toilet.

She had to ask herself for the hundredth time, no surprise that she was not the only one in existence: why was life so hard?

Monique noticed her melancholy ever since the return, and today after class, she hurried after Kim so they headed home. "Girl, what is up with you and Ron?" she asked in exasperation.

"Monique, I really can't explain it."

"To hell you can't! It has to do with Monty boy, right? Come on, you told me everything, so I am no fool!" the other woman snapped, and Kim sighed, bowing her head.

"You're right, sorry. Ron pulled the worst, stupidest move ever..."

And so she told Monique everything on the way home, and when they finally arrived at their destination, Monique's jaw was slack before she snapped it shut. "Ron, dude boy - ugh!" She threw her free arm in the air. "You were so lucky to not be barred with him!"

Kim did the honors of unlocking the door for them both. "Yeah, that's what I told myself. But while I feel good about it, I don't know because I know Lord Fiske will need my help again, and what if he won't want to see Ron again then? I can't even save the world or do anything without him..." Her heart felt like it was hollowed out as she struggled to get out the terrible memory. She had lived with her past experiences and used them for the sake of her present and future - but as it turned out, the future was too depressing to think about. Anything could change. That was beside the point; the point was that she wasn't sure how she could patch it up with Ron, or get Monty to see he wasn't as bad as he seemed, that he meant well...

No, it seemed impossible, she decided based on the clear hatred they shared with each other's eyes. The rivalry was deep enough that a reconciliation was virtually impossible.

"I think I know what this means, Kim."

"Excuse me?" the redhead asked as she dropped her book bag on the countertop.

Monique grinned from ear-to-ear. "He has his eyes on you. More than he lets on. I bet he asked for your number, or maybe he'll ask Wade to hook him to you."

"Oh, don't start now, Monique!" She turned her back to her friend and gripped either side of the counter. The setting up, here it comes...

"What, girl? No guys since 'Eric' -" The air quotes were present. "- and none so far, and we are gonna graduate at the end of the year. I got Brick, and he's done with college, in the field and building a career for himself. Ron's got Tara - but you're by yourself. I've let you live your independence long enough, let you wallow in the fact that the perfect guy turned out to be a falsity - and right now, I believe a certain longtime favorite figure of yours who's finally gotten you in his presence is next on the list. I've always seen the way you looked at him, and you told me about the way he looked at you in return, those minor touches and the charming words..." When Kim whirled around, she saw her roommate's eyes glitter knowingly. She narrowed her own.

"Monique, this is only professional between us. I won't let a girlish crush get in the way. Just because he's good and polite does not mean -"

"Mean what? That he secretly admires you back? Girl, please, if anyone is fooling, it's yourself."

It seemed there was no way of backing out of this. "How am I fooling myself, Mon?" Kim demanded.

She snorted, waving her hand and crossing until she leaned over the countertop so their noses nearly met. "You really wanna let this good old opportunity slip by you when it's staring at you in the face, Kimberly Ann? Next time you talk to him, you ought to think about whether or not he's a risk worth taking. He might be the one way better for you than Eric or Josh, after all," Monique said with a wink, her anger forgotten, but before Kim could ponder this or respond, the doorbell rang. They both turned their heads towards the door itself, both with one idea in mind.

Their Halloween costumes had arrived.

~o~

"Need I ask, milord?" Bates asked when he read aloud the invitation to Dr. Reeves' Halloween celebration at her London manor. Holidays meant little to Lord Fiske, even his own birthday, that he almost never accepted an invitation to even his good friend and colleague's parties. Joanne Reeves was the only real friend they had who didn't turn her nose at him, and the valet knew that Monty saw that but didn't see her as the one he could count on with even his dirtiest of secrets - and one such he would reveal was the case.

"No time for that, Bates. No masks, no costumes - and absolutely no boring to death with what you love that the other finds disinteresting," Fiske answered with a snort as he downed down the seasonal brandy which was made with a hint of pumpkin spice. Bates had sampled it himself and had to enjoy it with his master, but the monkeys, Chippy and Mila, had no tolerance of alcohol according to the expert himself. But that was not the only reason he could not allow his simian companions anywhere near his prized liquor. "I have better things to do than tolerate another get-together."

And there were a few things he could think of that he couldn't object to, which another would find wary. "I should wish you luck then, milord," he said, taking the empty glass away along with the decanter set. His master always knew to pace himself, just to have a glass or two to loosen up before he slipped out when the hour grew late, when no one would bother him on this one night where others could dress and pretend to be something else...

...but it gave him the freedom to be _what_ he really was.

"Chippy! Mila!" Monty called, and the monkeys were in front of him to his satisfaction. "To the dojo - and then we head for the moors." His face split into a manic grin with matching gleaming eyes. "And the real fun begins."

Bates sighed and put his hands behind his back. He had never been able to approve fully of his master's "wild life" on occasion, but it was never his place to question, just to accept. But there was always a chance given to boldly step in because he cared enough for Fiske's well-being; he'd helped Anne Fiske raise her son, after all, because he was all she had left of her late husband. And what had caused her son to be the way he was now might one day bring him too far down if he wasn't careful...

~o~

"On my signal, my monkey minions."

He watched them from the exposed eyes of his mask as his little friends - and minions, as he called them because the time would soon come to take every ounce of their training to the next level. This room they were now in, hidden behind the fireplace as a long-lived secret of the Fiske Castle, had been modeled into a training ground before Monty Fiske was born, which his mother had hidden from him until his teenage years, and had been a place for his father and Thomas' childhood friend in youth.

Raising his gloved hand as promised, he brought it down to rest across his chest in a horizontal gesture for Chippy and Mila, in their customized black ninja garb, to leap at each other and engage in basic kung fu which gradually gave way to graceful brutality in the hand strikes - in which the paws had the digits flat together to form the shape of the axe blade, very sharp, blunt and lethal - and dips turning into kicks from beneath the opponent in efforts to catch them off-guard. Their tails flashed out, but not used as weapons until absolutely necessary. He watched on with tremendous pride in his heart.

That day and night in Congo would have been the last day for them if he had not been there for his mission, aiding in catching the latest poacher personally after completing the assignment involving helping a rescued tree monkey species adjust to its new habitat in that area. The trap he happened across was meant to be for either a gorilla or chimpanzee, but these two little ones he could not just leave until the authorities arrived. He was the first one to arrive at the scene, limited with the proper resources as one man...but he also had what no other man in his existence possessed that had saved them both.

He'd risked his life and his secret for them both, much to his surprise. Was this not what he'd been born for - risk and thrill? His mother had always worried for him, but since her death, he was free if not spiteful of her. He missed her, loved her, but she had good reasons to shelter him from the world much of his life. But since her death, Bates was his only human contact if not always satisfying. Monty had longed for something - or someone - who he felt was understanding of the other part of him that wasn't even human...

When he got the two little creatures safely away, he hadn't paid much attention to realize another trap might be in the vicinity, for it hadn't been long till his foot had sprung the noose hidden in nature, hanging him upside down like the very creatures his life was dedicated to. He'd believed that his kidnappers would have found out who he was, what he was, and held him for ransom perhaps - but the monkeys he rescued repaid him by craftily freeing him and getting away from the site.

Twice before then he'd been nearly caught in a poacher's trap, but the chances for others was always slim to none. It seemed these illegal traders could always have a captive human as a plan B. When he and the two monkeys were safely away from the site and arrived back at his jeep where Bates was and had tried searching for him, he had then been reprimanded by his valet which he'd scowled at, because he'd revealed his antics that stemmed the attention of the monkeys he'd decided to name Chippy and Mila, but it had been necessary to get them both safely away.

It was his revelation that got the attention of both monkeys, and he let them touch those parts of him, drawing the connection between them and the man who saved them right away. Against Bates' protests on that day, Monty Fiske decided he could not part with them.

He had not once since regretted it.

"You have done well," Monty intoned when they both came to kneel before their master, bowing their heads. He smiled down at them behind his mask, then reached to pull it off. The hour was still young, but late enough for them to unmask and retreat into the wild that surrounded the castle. When he was young, late at night when his mother would fall asleep as did Bates, he would shed his clothes as soon as he was a safe distance from home and climb the trees, even dip in the nearby spring, becoming one with the wilderness before he returned just before the wee hours of the morning, in time for dawn to break and his morning and afternoon tutoring.

Tonight was no exception, as the monkeys shed their garb and became comfortable with their fur. He would not do so just yet, as soon as Castle Fiske was behind them. To be wild and carefree again for tonight, where the spirits and daemons of the myths would be out causing mischief...he would relish unleashing himself as the others in the city and nearby small towns would be costumed as something else.

By the time Monty stood on the moist earth, every layer of bare flesh caressed by moonlight, his clothing lay around his ankles; he stepped out of them and surged forward with the monkeys screeching with him into the night air, which was carried with the wind that sang through the trees and reached the moon overhead.

~o~

Halloween was fun when she and Monique donned their costumes. Her friend looked like the showstopper she was in the black-and-white corset of Elizabeth in _Bioshock: Infinite,_ the game Ron loved immensely amongst others with cousin Larry on occasion. Finished with her hair elegantly bunned, and a black coat, skirt and boots, Monique was guaranteed to cause nosebleeds at her parents' house, but it wasn't like it would be a frat party they were going to.

On Kim's part, she hadn't felt this giddy since before preteen years. Her costume was somewhat inspired by Tinker Bell. The lace was beaded with flowers and crystals of the lightest green ever from the top of the shoulders before descending to the darkest green at the waist; the high-low skirt was layered with dark and light green and sewed with those same flowers. As for the top part of the dress which the jewels and florals decorated, the mesh was nude-colored so that the illusion consisted of nature protruding from her nubile body. Finally, the wings themselves were fiber optic so that they glowed in the dark and directed ALL eyes on her. Auburn hair wild, her crown was set with clustered ivy, moss and tiny roses.

Looking herself in the mirror, she smiled. It wasn't anywhere near the childish form she would have donned as a little girl in pigtails, but at the time it was a combo of regality and youthful femininity, and she'd been six or seven at the time, but she still carried the picture of her and Ron, who had been the dashing little fairy prince so they matched: the magical dress had been lush blue with an ombre dye of purple at the hem, with pale pink sugary flowers scattered all over, crystals adding pops of sparkle. Every little girl always want to be a princess or a fantasy creature for a day or night, and then had been no exception...but tonight was different as she found herself looking at a grown woman in a fantasy covering.

It wasn't that she hadn't dressed any differently over the years; one year in high school, she'd gone as a medieval princess when she'd gone to Monique's party because of Josh...but that was a long time ago.

Maybe she was getting too grown up to dress as something like this, no matter how sophisticated it had been made for her and her body type.

Aside from that, to be at her parents' house, to socialize with the tweebs who were in their final year of high school, and of course Ron and Rufus were there, as well as his parents, Tara, Wade, and Monique brought Brick along. It was like good old times, with no problems - except one.

Her mother had noticed that she and Ron had been avoiding each other much of the night, spoke only a few words. Anne Possible had always been there for her daughter when she needed it, but Kim wasn't sure how to explain her recent adventures, especially on Halloween and it being the first time in months they saw each other. "Kimmy," her mother had insisted gently when she followed her to the punch table, and this was when the daughter decided now was better than later.

"Mom, I had a new mission to Brazil a few weeks ago, and Ron and I have been avoiding each other because of the man whom I...admired for his work since high school, and he's a great role model, really," she'd explained, then went on to bring up Ron's monkey phobia which happened to be Lord Monty Fiske's field of passion, and this made the mission harder on her because of the adversarial stage sparked because of her best friend's deep-rooted issues and her role model loathing him for the insults.

By the time she was finished, Anne's face had fallen. "Oh, that's terrible. Ron didn't mean any harm, did he?"

"Not at all, but he shouldn't have gone around and snuck around the castle like that. I felt kind of...betrayed. I thought he would see Lord Fiske as a good man who's..." Her cheeks burned when her emerald eyes met her mother's blues, which were more along the lines of the sky in difference to a pair of icier ones which darkened to stormy gray when enraged. Just how could she describe Monty now to her mother?

Who, by the way, was smiling in understanding. "Just like you? Adventurous, independent, passionate - and devilishly charming?" she added with a wink that made the daughter laugh with her.

Suddenly, the words sank into Kim's psyche even though she already knew them about Montgomery Fiske:

 _Adventurous..._

 _Independent..._

 _Passionate..._

 _Devilishly charming..._

That last one sealed the door and locked the bolt to keep it in.

Anne noticed her reaction and winked. "Kimmy...is there something you're not telling me?"

What could she say other than to laugh again? However, she had to say that there was nothing personal going on between her and Lord Fiske as he was only a colleague and a client who needed her aid, nothing more. But the glitter in her mother's eyes, no different than Monique, told another story that Kimberly was not sure if she would ever live this down.

It was by the time she and Monique got back that they noticed the small package that rested before their doorstep, having arrived late by first-class mail. And it was addressed to her, Kim Possible.

Monique raised both eyebrows. "Oh, I wonder who it is from."

"One way to find out." She didn't turn it over to see WHO the sender was, leaving Monique to turn the lights on and lock the doors, then followed her to the kitchen to tear it open...

...and out fell a black velvet pouch which could carry one thing on her mind - and she gasped in shock with her friend when she pulled open the drawstring and revealed the contents. Monique shrieked to the high heavens, and neither of them had gotten drunk. "GIRL, I TOLD YOU!"

She was too distracted by the craftsmanship in both palms of her hands. The heart shape had an ornate filigree set with small diamonds twinkling faintly, and in the middle was a larger ruby, representing purity and passion combined. This was a real treasure, yes. But then she noticed the side, realizing it was a locket, and her heartbeat picked up when she unlocked what was inside...and her heart burst when the face of _Monty Fiske_ smiled back at her, in a real photograph rather than a painted one.

"Kim, look at this!" She looked up and saw that Monique had found a piece of paper folded neatly and hidden from sight until now. She had to read it aloud much to the redhead's embarrassment.

 _"There are certain moments that you never wish to forget - and I could not let you forget me outside the callings. Photo albums and portraits are not compared to this. Keep my face close to your heart, as your memory in your mind can only do so much. Yours truly, Lord Monty Fiske."_

Almost four weeks, and she hadn't heard from him until now - and this was what she got from him. Not even anything related to the search for the fourth jade monkey idol. But it didn't matter since this was here, and never did she expect it.

Oh, God, she would never take this off. She swore this silently as she found herself in her room after changing out of her costume, cleaned up and was prepared to pass out since tomorrow was Saturday, draping it around her neck, the cool sterling silver emitting a fire through her skin and penetrating her breastbone, causing her heartbeat to thunder with a vengeance.

 **My boyfriend loves the game "Bioshock", and the real costume of Elizabeth as well as the Art Nouveau Tinker Bell costume and Royal Spring Faerie of Kim's youth were made by Lillyxandra found on deviantart. :)**

 **The locket I found on Stauer: "Unforgettable Heart", and it happens to be the very same treasure Monty had found within himself to send to Kim on Halloween. :D More about that in the next chapter. The story behind the jewel also worked its way into the note he sent along with his photograph. It was also vital to the little expansion of how he met Chippy and Mila, and how important they were to him...and soon he'll drop his barriers and realize Kim Possible is more than just a partner.**


	9. Unforgettable Gifts

Chapter Nine

Unforgettable Gifts

When he received the email, he was stunned to learn that it was four days to pass since the gift arrived on Halloween. He was beginning to wonder if she did get the locket, and she had. Her tech friend had taken the liberty of hooking her up to him, giving him this answer:

 _Thank you, Lord Fiske. I never thought I would have something like this of you in the years I admired you._

Monty could not help but smile, a blush creeping to his cheeks. He was aware of her admiration for him, but why did he feel like a schoolboy again? This was...ridiculous. It had been embarrassing to be convinced by Bates to give her the locket which his father had given to his mother long ago, then having Thomas Fiske's portrait inside - and now his son had his chance because of the valet who had somehow decided to play matchmaker.

"Bates, really, you have gone too far with this. You haven't set me up with a woman in years. How many times do I have to keep saying this -"

"Milord, this is nothing like those other females trying to latch on you," the valet had responded calmly. "If you have to just ask me why, it is because I am merely looking out for your best interests. You and Miss Possible do not fool me; I have seen the way you look at each other."

Monty had gaped. "A look does _not_ mean anything!" he'd insisted.

Bates only laughed. "Then do what your father did for your mother before you were born, and see how the young Miss Possible responds to that. She might find it flattering and would see that there is more to you than you let on in her presence."

The mild argument went on for awhile from there, with the master stating his case that if she found out about his birth secret and everything, then it would crumble from being. Bates knew that, so why was he insisting on playing matchmaker? "Because I care, and I will not say it again," his manservant stated. "You're on the verge of reaching your fourth decade of life, and you are still alone. Just how long will it be before you realize what you've missed out on? Are you willing to spend the rest of your life as a bachelor, milord? And will you be willing to let an opportunity like Kim Possible, a young woman who is like you in more ways than one, slip past your fingers?"

Reluctantly, the British lord had to agree. It had been so long since he had the company of someone who actually cared about his interests - or should he say, he never once had female company beside his mother? Kim knew nothing about his family history, and chances were she would ask him questions. He tried his best not to dwell too much about this, and instead focus on the present that was slowly allowing the young Miss Possible in his life. He was not willing to go too far just yet.

In other words: he wanted Kim Possible in his life without worrying about the future. For now.

When he found himself checking the email, he confessed that he still was not used to modern technology, given handwritten letters were his forte and had been his mother's. Anne had her own situation in completely avoiding the topic entirely, but it didn't seem to stop her son from beginning to learn it; however, Monty was just like his mother in the sense he was used to old-fashioned techniques like snail mail.

Yet in the case of the modern-living Miss Possible, he found that he might try and get used to this. Smiling to one corner of his mouth, he sent her his reply: _I apologize if my note overwhelmed you in any sense. If it won't be trouble, I would be honored to keep in touch with you this way however we can - even if we are an ocean apart and within varied time zones. Take great care, Miss Possible - I mean, Kimberly._

"Well, it seems you are one step closer to becoming involved in the new ways of the world, milord."

He exhaled and leaned back in his chair, stretching his back. "We shall see about that." He tried to imagine how she must look now with his face in a heart around her neck, wondering if she would ever take it off anytime.

~o~

What was this becoming, an adolescent love-fest for her?

"I don't know how much longer I can...ignore this," she said aloud to herself as she sat with her legs crossed on her bed, the Kimmunicator displaying the message from none other than the man whose locket picture still hung around her neck. She could not ignore him now, and Monique was right - but what about him? Was this one of the old-fashioned parts of courtship, and that this was his way of starting one...?

This one section caught her attention the most.

 _We are an ocean apart..._

That was the only thing that put the downside up, made her sigh warily. If there was one thing that generally didn't work, it was a long-distance relationship. But she and Monty never did give an indication of any form of a romance outside their established partnership. But why else did he send her this...

Her fingers flew to the heart, closing them around it. Her old fears were threatening to come back to the surface that she knew she had to confide in someone she cared about over this. Monique, for one, and her mother. Ron could never know of this, knowing him.

Wade had read the message with her, and his face showed up, looking mildly trepidated. _"Kim, no relationship expert, but are you sure about this? From what I heard, professional turned personal can break your heart in the end."_

And the last thing she wanted was more heartbreak. "No kidding. I want to say yes to this, but I don't think he likes me that way. That bothers me more than long-distance," she said.

 _"Know someone you can talk to about this?"_ He scratched the back of his head knowingly.

"My mom."

Wade's attention fell to the locket around her neck and winked. _"Good luck with that."_

So a call to Mom was in order. Anne was at the hospital, so based on experiences whenever the daughter needed her help at odd times, often would Anne Possible have her on speaker, so Kim was not going to take any chances. When her mother finally did answer, the matriarch was more than happy to hear from her, but based on her tone, her face had fallen. "Before I go on, Mom," Kim said slowly, "do you have me on speaker?"

 _"Glad you remembered to ask, baby. Today I have a tumor to remove, but I can't stay on too long. I should call you back in half an hour, okay? Or better yet - meet you for lunch this week?"_

Kim suppressed a sigh. Longer to wait meant the more time she had to try and figure out some details on her own. "How does Friday sound?"

 _"Friday it is. Love you, Kimmy!"_

"You, too." Hanging up, she looked up and saw the time came to put her shoes on and go to class. The thing with Monty and whatever feelings she was developing would have to wait.

~o~

He was filling out his lecture for this afternoon on the Libyan front at the college when one of his students approached him in the library, one of the best places he could be, surrounded by books and privacy - until this one interrupted him.

"Lord Fiske?"

"Yes, Miss Leaven?" He looked up and raised an eyebrow at one of the young students he regarded with absolute contempt. She was the very definition of the kind of woman he despised for reasons she was here. She was red-haired, like Kim Possible, but her eyes were a warm hazelnut that betrayed the mischief shining.

She continued his way and stopped in front of him whilst chewing her lower lip. "I wanted to apologize for my behavior yesterday, sir," Grace Leaven said softly, and he snorted as he raised an eyebrow.

"An apology was hardly to be expected. Or is it merely to waste my time given our...past history?" No, dare he not go far because nothing of the sort happened other than her feeble attempts to crawl into his lap. Grace Leaven wasn't near the top, nor was she near the low, but she was very lazy if you asked him. Given her humble origins, he doubted she could ever match up to Kim Possible's standards or any other girls her age, attempt to avoid the burden of housewife and motherhood. She could have just immigrated to the states if she wanted to, but those chances were slim.

"No, my lord," his timid pupil at his part-time teaching position at his alma mater said with a lower of the eyes. "I mean it. I went too far because of my...anxieties." She sat down in the chair beside him but avoided eye contact as she continued to look at him. He urged her to go on, all the while glancing at the clock to make sure he did not leave late for the board meeting. "My parents want me to get married to a good family, but I want to prove them wrong that I can do something I love. Some old-fashioned ways never change, and I find it wrong. I won't be like my mother who gave up her career as a stage actress, Lord Fiske. You're going to laugh at me, but you're the one who is inspiring me." Her eyes were shining now. "I am really sorry that I'm not perfect in your class."

Fiske blinked, too stunned to speak for a moment. There was not one student in London who did not voice their idolization of him, but not all of them were like Possible and respected him. Handfuls of females would do what Miss Leaven here tried to do - but the majority of them would never attempt to mend their messes with him like she. Looking into her glazing eyes, he saw that she was not trying to play him; she was striving so hard to be better than her parents, and in a way, he admired her for that. She wasn't born into privilege as he, but she wasn't going to let it stop her. She struggled with the last subject and failed to get the help she deserved, then thought of HIM as the last resort but failed yet again.

Looking into her eyes, he also saw his _mother's_ gaze. She would never have resorted to anything low-base, but she knew to own herself and did anything that was necessary. But when her husband was killed, she withdrew because she found she couldn't handle anything without him. Somehow, he wished Anne was here now, because she knew how to help a soul in need better than him.

"You're right," Monty said after a moment, relaxing and leaning over, his elbow resting on the table surface. "No one is perfect even though we try to be. I never admit this to anyone else...but I have a few flaws myself. You only have to believe in yourself, simple as that - even if life itself is never simple." A smile formed that she returned it, her self-esteem growing back in slow bits.

"Thank you, Lord Fiske."

He chuckled. Now that this was out of the way, he found his attention shifted to the books she brought with her. "You have something to ask me? I must go soon for a board meeting."

"If it's not a problem, I'd like to discuss the Turkdean Barrow near Hazelton..."

~o~

Early November tended to get pretty chilly, but she dressed up nicely in a black lace half-cami and jeans, meeting her mother at the hospital following classes finished for the day, and cheer practice was not for another three hours. There was the woman herself with her coffee and donuts, looking over the afternoon paper, then looked up with a sunny smile at the sight of her daughter. "Kimmy!" She stood up and extended her arms for the embrace that Kim could not wait to give her.

"Great to see you, Mom."

"You look gorgeous - oh, is this it?" Anne exclaimed when she saw the heart dangling over her heart. "It's lovely!" Taking it into a couple fingers, she probed, and Kim let her. "It looks like a locket..." Then she pried open the side and revealed the picture of the man it came from. Anne's blue eyes bulged. "Kimmy, is this him?"

Chewing her lower lip and blushing, Kim nodded. "Yeah, it's Lord Monty Fiske."

"He's more handsome than I expected," her mother said with a wink. Almost groaning with embarrassment, Kim sat down first.

"Talk about long-distance and a maybe...crush," she said hesitantly, sparking the wisdom in the eyes of the mother whom she always ran to for advice whenever she had a fight with Ron, with Bonnie, or any of her missions. And boys, too. She'd been there when Eric was revealed to be a synthodrone.

At times, Anne could lower her guard and become a giggling, gossiping schoolgirl with her over the littlest of details, but when the situation was serious, then it was treated as seriously. "I know we talked about this on Halloween, sweetie," she said as she let her daughter take a donut glazed with honey, "but you really do seem to like him. He clearly likes you, too. Why else would he send this?" She tapped on the now-closed pendant with her thumb for emphasis. "Your dad sent me a Morano bracelet a few months after we first met in college."

She took another sip of coffee. Her next surgery wasn't for another twenty minutes, but Kim knew better than to let time fly when there was so much to say. "Yeah, but Lord Monty Fiske, a world-famous explorer and highly respected scholar, isn't the type to romance a woman. I don't think he's ever married or even dated."

"It's called courting over there," Anne stated with a glint. "Old-fashioned, like Nana told your father and me a long time ago."

"This is just too good to be true," she blurted out, fingering the locket between her forefinger and thumb. "I mean, Monty is the first real one I met in a long time, and he wasn't Eric. He's a grown man and not a high school boy, but there are so many problems. Ron, for one, but this is my choice to make."

The smile fell from her mother's face. "You mean if you decided to just grab the rein and go for it, he wouldn't like it."

"Exactly! Ron hasn't grown up with his monkey issues, and as a result, he and Lord Fiske hate each other. Now he's banned Ron from his house, but not me. And then he tells me I can come back anytime, and now we are keeping in touch outside the work zone - but now he's sent me this," Kim finished, flourishing the one physical connection she had of the man who resided in her being.

Anne shrugged. "And why else would he? No man does anything of the sort if it means nothing. He obviously has taken a shine to you. You should fly back to England next time and see him, or maybe he'll man up and ask you over himself. Better yet: you should bring him over to the house for Thanksgiving if he has nothing better," she said with a wink that took Kim off altogether...

...but on second thought, maybe that wasn't a bad idea. After all, Monty did say he didn't like formal events, if England had those for a family even, like Christmas - but if he was going to spend it alone in his lonely castle, then that was out of the question for Kim Possible's watch.

Thanksgiving was not for another two and a half weeks. But it still gave time to plan ahead and pull strings of her own.

~o~

Why did he even go boldly far enough to assume that this next gift he had to send her would be accepted like the locket?

Monty's lip curled as he opened the package that had been labeled _RETURN TO SENDER_ and in a new wrapping by the one who opened it - complete with the item itself and the note that came with: _Beauty, purity and eternal love exist as one - and for a one and only for life._

According to scientific studies, swans did indeed mate for life just like in fairytale romances. This brooch demonstrated pure commitment, even showing the necks of both birds gracefully arched as they sang everlasting love for each other. The diamonds embedded matched the symbolism of this elegant pair. "She did _what?!_ " he'd said aloud in outrage, burning righteously in spite of himself as he tried not to crush the priceless jewel with his bare hands. He had never been so insulted like this! Chippy and Mila ooked worriedly and stepped back.

He had never meant to blatantly tell her this way, but only because he'd have thought she'd love it because of the meaning of the swan. Bates had suggested it, too. "She'd have been flattered," he was saying just now, enflaming the lord's fires, "but I believe I know why she must have sent your mother's treasure back to you."

"Enlighten me," Monty hissed, not looking at him.

"Sometimes a woman sends a gift back because it is her way of saying she does not want the jewel itself, as much as you meant well - she wants the _man_ who gave it."

He blinked in surprise at this, raising his head but not looking at his loyal valet. Kimberly...she liked his gifts, but if she kept the locket, why did she have to return THIS? These were not bought with his own money, but had been his mother's. It wasn't because he didn't want to waste a bill, but because he knew Anne's jewels meant more than any made by every jeweler in London or even in the entire world. In the ways of the old world, Kim was showing her innocence and virtue by keeping one item that meant the most and returned the rest back to him.

It was almost as if he could actually HEAR her telling him: _Money means nothing as much as the person who owns it._

His temper slowly cooled, but the lingering flames licked at his blood when he thought of her and the shine in her eyes that outlasted the fire of the swans in his palm.

~o~

Monty had sent her another present, but it was getting too much even though this was only the second one.

The minute she opened the wrapping and revealed the diamond brooch of the two swans as well as the message, Kim's heartbeat began to pick up for a number of reasons. One, she loved this. Two, this was proving what her mother and Monique were drilling into her. But three?

She couldn't accept this one because it was too much. It wasn't that she didn't want it, but it was because it felt like all of this was happening so suddenly.

She'd been sitting at the kitchen counter, fighting the tears that burned the corners of her eyes. That question she'd always asked herself threatened to return, but she shoved it down because there was no sense in asking herself again only to know the answer. She'd wasted no time in calling her mother again and straight out asking her what she should do with this one, to which Anne stated that she'd done this once with James, her father, when they were younger and involving a golden chain necklace made in Italy that she'd thought was too much compared to the man with a heart to match it. "It may seem scary to think that you are pushing him away by returning it, but really, you're making him want you even more," she'd said, "because you want him and not what he can offer you."

Now that left one question: did _Monty_ get the hint when she did return the swan brooch?

Kim was afraid to email him, because what was a typed message when the _Kimmunicator_ was in order? Maybe she could get him one, get in touch with modern tech, and have Wade hook one up for him so they could talk eye-to-eye...

 _"I won't ask if you are sure about this, Kim,"_ Wade told her when she pitched the idea to him after getting back to the apartment after cheer practice in the middle of the following week. _"We both know he's a busy man and won't always have time to chat."_

"Yeah, but it's a risk I'm willing to take," Kim declared, finding herself looking down at the closed heart above the one beating behind her sternum, and smiled dreamily.

~o~

Luckily Bates was the one to answer the doorbell and receive the package that came less than a week after his master received the returned jewel once belonging to the late Lady Anne. Monty's mood had improved with a little help from the valet's advice, but the older man had seen it in his eyes which were clouding over. There was still a part of Monty that was still sour from his mother's treasures being returned to him.

"But milord," he'd implored, "she did keep the locket that has your photograph...close to her heart as your mother once had your father." And if you asked Bates, one priceless item was worth more than all the diamonds and rubies, gold and silver of the world.

"Yes...she did." Fiske had sounded distant, off in his own little world.

Now, she'd sent his master a gift of her own, but there was no telling what it was. Bates was no stranger to taking care of his master's matters - and safe to say, he was surprised at what he'd found. It looked like a small device that was to be strapped to the wrist, with a screen and controls. What was that technological communication system Miss Possible had called it? Oh, yes, a _Kimmunicator._ The note she'd left, as a small payback, made him chuckle.

 _Call me, beep me, if you want to reach me, my lord._

Bates abandoned the cardboard and receipt and everything on the table as he went off to hunt for Lord Fiske who was currently in the dojo with the monkeys. If you asked the valet, to be in touch easier than email or written letters between a possible match was by far more ingenious these days.

 **Between Monty and his student was inspired by a scene in Indiana Jones' class from "Raiders of the Lost Ark". :) Archaeological purposes and involving demons. I couldn't just have a simple, common "crawling into the lap for a better grade", knowing how shallow it is. I never knew anyone like that - but I suppose it's possible it could happen that the motivations are much deeper.**

 **Another treasure of Stauer: the swan brooch which tells the story of how swans are one of nature's rarest animals that mated for life just like in a fairytale. :D It's even perfect for lifelong loves and newlyweds.**

 **Since things are changed slightly around here, there were so many possible ways for the charming, mysterious Lord Fiske to begin courting the innocent but worldly Miss Possible. For her to keep one gift but send the other back was enough to begin to make him want her more as she knows she wants him - but tackling demons is part of the journey.**


	10. Thanksgiving

**I'd been watching "The Other Boleyn Girl" some years ago with my grandmother, and it was when Anne Boleyn (played by Natalie Portman) was sending back the gifts that King Henry VIII (Eric Bana) sent to her whilst her sister Mary (Scarlett Johansson) laid in bed rest before the birth of the child she conceived with the king. Anne claimed to have been insulted that he had to send her these jewels, when in truth, it was her method of getting him to want HER instead of her sister. My grandmother had told me so herself.**

Chapter Ten

Thanksgiving

 _"Miss Possible."_

"Lord Fiske."

Both were smiling, but the gazes in each other's eyes told that they had more to say. _"I see you are wearing one of my gifts,"_ he said when his attention fell to the sparkle over the fabric of her lace-trimmed denim top. Kim was currently in the library assisting voluntarily and was just finishing up when she got the call on her wrist Kimmunicator. The six or seven hour difference made it a little difficult.

She looked before, behind and side-to-side to make sure the cranky librarian didn't catch onto her. "Yes, I still love it," she said softly. "Thanks again."

His smile was gone then, but his expression was stoned; his tone matched his words. _"Yet I wonder why you had to return the last one. It was one of my late mother's jewels, and it had been given to her by my father as a wedding present. That locket once carried his photograph for her to wear close to her heart. I feared I had been insulting you."_

Kim swallowed. "No," she said quickly, "I was just a little...overwhelmed. I don't mean to cut you off, but I have a few shelves of books to finish up, and the librarian will -"

"Possible!" a shrilly voice called to her, safe to do so when closing time was approaching. "Are you done?!"

"Almost!" she answered, then lowered her voice. "Monty, I'll get back to you."

His face fell but softened. _"I understand,"_ was all he said before he broke the connection himself. She breathed a sigh of relief but hated doing that to him.

It was six o'clock by the time she was finished, and she heaved a sigh of relief, wondering if she'd have ever gotten out of there. But if Monty didn't have the time now if he was still at the museum, or wherever else, then it was on her part to catch him at the wrong time.

Thankfully she hadn't. Surprised, she saw he was relaxing at home, in his dressing gown - or should she say, smoking jacket? How come she didn't notice before how handsome he looked in that thing, like in his explorer's garb in Brazil or the way he looked for the dinner at his castle? "You said they were both your...mother's?" Kim asked. It surprised her that he even thought to give her something that had belonged to the matriarch of his family. He chuckled.

 _"They were from my father not long into their marriage,"_ he answered, but then his smile immediately reverted, which lashed her like a whip. He really was quick to go from one mood to the next that it made her uncomfortable. _"But you said I was making you feel uncomfortable."_

"Because..." She struggled with how to answer. "...I love the locket, and I'll treasure it always, but anything overt isn't something I'd carry around me all the time. It's overwhelming. I'm flattered and I thank you, but I really can't accept too much from you, Monty. It's happening...too fast."

He raised an eyebrow. _"What, pray tell, is 'happening too fast'?"_

Oh, great. Her and her mouth - or was it him? His sharp blues were glittering, which meant one thing only. He set the bait and trapped her as soon as she was within reach. "I...don't know. Oh, God, I'm sorry, but please don't get the wrong idea," she begged. His wry smile was back in place, and he nodded once, urging her. "I haven't been in a...relationship or even with a guy in a long time, and I never thought it would happen again. I must have taken you sending me these -" She thumbed the locket. "- the wrong way. You're not the type to become committed other than to your work, right?" She had to tread carefully, because the wrong word meant it was all over, and everything would be strained.

 _"I am not skilled completely in these matters either, Kimberly,"_ he said at last, _"but it only pleased me to show you some kindness and generosity."_

She blinked. He...just wanted to be kind and generous to her. So this wasn't romance after all, and it made her feel a little sad. But she did her best to not show it. She wasn't a young girl anymore; she could handle this like the independent woman she was. Monique and her mother would understand her through this.

And Ron - she still had not spoken to him in a few weeks, and after all that time, she was hurting from it. He was, too, and Tara had told her so. Rufus was down in the dumps just with him. If there was a way to patch it up with him, come to an understanding, and maybe mention Monty less just for their sakes. Maybe one day Ron would understand, but Monty himself was hard to read in that direction.

"Thank you for doing this for me," Kim said after a long moment of thinking, "but I really would appreciate it if we remained just colleagues and focused on the...last jade monkey." The last thing she needed was an awkward working relationship, and they both knew how important that was. "For both our sakes, I'd rather just put any ideas like I said aside."

 _"...I suppose you are right, Kimberly. I apologize, once more. But if it won't be too much, I'd love to just send you...one last. And it is nothing that my mother owned."_

Kim thought something inside her would react, but nothing. "What is it?" she asked. He smiled tenderly.

 _"You will love it, and the moment I laid my eyes on it, I knew it would be yours. In a couple days, you will receive it."_

"Well, I don't know about you...but I feel better," she admitted with a lighthearted laugh. She could deal with this, she told herself. Just take a day at a time, and she still needed to ask him what she'd been meaning to. "Monty, if you have nothing better to do...how do you feel about flying over here to Middleton for Thanksgiving dinner with my family?"

~o~

Thanksgiving across the ocean from home? Never did he think he would live to see this.

"It's good for you, milord," Bates told him with a slight smile when the connection broke between him and Kim, who had begun to make him feel hotter than before. Not just because she had basically told him that she would not accept anything from him because it gave her the wrong idea on a personal level - but he had subtle ideas. She suffered in her relationship department, but that was years ago. However, it affected her more than he thought. He had to ask Bates' part before he assumed the wrong idea. If there was anything else his mother drilled into him, it was to tread the waters with great care.

Bates had lowered his eyes to the closed cover of _Kathryn's Journey_ on the study's desk when his master asked for his advice. "She merely does not wish to be hurt again like she once was. Just like you don't wish to be harmed if she..." He stopped his sentence there. Fiske had nodded knowingly, understanding now and deciding to take great care with this. A woman like Kim Possible who wasn't his late mother was still fairly alien to him...and he had no desire to hurt her in any way.

Monty closed his eyes then and reached to rub his eyes. He had been looking forward to just sharing the day with Bates and the monkeys with a small turkey and dinner, the favored seasoned brandy, but a visit from Joanne Reeves and her family might have surprised them all. He never traveled outside England for a holiday, not outside work, so he was stricken when Kim asked him if he wanted to spend it with her and her family if he had nothing better to do.

"It seems not," he said, weary and resigned, knowing Bates would take matters into his own hands whether he asked or not. "I'll clear off my schedule and meet you there the day before." That was a promise, and he didn't know what to expect when he gave the museum and the university his slip for a three-day trip to the states that wasn't research purposes.

His valet chuckled. "She will be most pleased to see you, milord."

"Of course she will be."

He had to leave Chippy and Mila at home because of the zero tolerance of African animals aboard the airlines, and their ooks and whimpers made him feel guilty about leaving them. But they could take care of themselves, and he was sure to leave enough fresh bananas and everything they needed, and they knew where the dojo was for their training as well as how to access.

He chose not to take his family charter this time because it was suffering technical difficulties that the pilots were not going to fix in time for the flight. Angered, Monty had to book the tickets for himself and Bates even though he could afford this. When they got to first-class, he could really go for a glass of wine and tea together. He needed to just relax and try not to assume what to expect too much. This could be a new adventure for him.

Unlike the coach passengers who would swipe their credit cards for even entertainment purposes, Monty and the others in this front part of the plane were allowed free music, films and television - a luxury he seldom enjoyed that Bates didn't force him into. For awhile, he listened to mythical music such as Antti Martikainen - amongst his favorite compositions was _King of the Highlands_ which took him back to his family's ancestral times - before he grew tired of the zen and needed energy, finding a promising choice in _In the Heart of the Sea,_ a new release which apparently was the "true story which inspired Herman Melville's _Moby Dick_ ". Monty wondered what the true facts could possibly be behind one of his cherished choices of light reading and wonderment.

And he thought they would never land in Middleton by the afternoon in its time zone.

"What a relief," he exhaled as he carried his own luggage but allowed Bates to carry the rest at his own insistence. No matter how old he got, Bates still held on the vow "I serve the family until the day I die". They were on the way to the Middleton Motor Lodge where they would stay for the duration of the weekend. On Sunday they would leave.

"Welcome to Middleton," the clerk at the desk said when they arrived, the luggage taken in on a carrier with Bates' help. "How long will you be staying with us, Lord Fiske?"

"Until Sunday afternoon," he answered as he gave the credit information.

The man with the broad spectacles gave a toothy smile. "In town on Thanksgiving holiday, sir?"

"Yes." He gave the other a sharp look, which told him he tolerated few questions asked. Chewing his lip in understanding, the clerk went back to work on his computer.

"Double, I take it?" he asked when he looked at Bates, who nodded with his master.

"Do you have a dojo?" Monty asked, clasping gloved fingers in front of himself and raising an eyebrow.

"We have a gym and spa."

Well, that would serve for now. "I'll take it."

He took the card keys and gestured for the valet to follow. "Strenuous activities when others are not around?" he asked as they searched for their room. "Intend to practice more...Monkey Kung Fu?"

"What else?" Monty answered with a chortle, not caring about anyone hearing and raising eyebrows. "Just because I am here on...vacation..." He said the word with foreign taste on his tongue. "...does not mean I will waste my bones and relax, lower my guard too much." They got off the elevator as soon as the doors dinged and informed them they had arrived.

"Well, this looks fulfilling enough," he noted as he took in their surroundings. Here they had separate bedrooms, the kitchen and small dining area, as well as their living room which offered a marvelous view of the fields and mountains in the distance. Light blue, white and lavender flowers dotted the lush emerald grass. It wasn't the same as his lands, but it was quite...charming. Peaceful and quiet, like his castle grounds - but suddenly, a wave came over him that he had no idea what brought it on. These surroundings were by far more lighter than his quiet, gloomy castle. Suddenly, he wished he was home already because this was too close for comfort.

The device around his wrist beeped. The pattern was somewhat annoying, making him wonder how on earth she ever got used to it. "Kimberly, I'm surprised you decided to ring me when I have just arrived," he noted coyly. "It seems we have been thinking alike."

 _"I think you're getting used to me, Your Lordship,"_ she returned with a wink that combined innocence and mischief. He stifled a snort. _"Should I leave you today so you can get settled in? Tomorrow's the day."_

"I look forward to meeting your family." It was really a mixed bet. Social gatherings made him pretend to be what he wasn't, but he doubted that Kim's family would pry too much - except he'd been wrong before; only Bates knew that.

Her eyes shone as they read through him. _"I don't hear any enthusiasm. Oh, don't worry,"_ she said with a wave of the hand. _"With the exception of the tweebs, my family might like you."_

"'Tweebs'?" Monty repeated, almost laughing.

 _"My twin brothers. They are in their last year of high school, and they have not grown up a lot. My mom's been looking forward to meeting you, and I think Nana will be overjoyed - plus, Aunt June is bringing her son, my cousin Larry - although my dad may get ideas,"_ Kim said with a crooked grin that told him he had to really watch out. He furrowed his brows.

What sort of a challenge could a protective father be for him?

~o~

Monty coming here made her feel giddy like a princess waiting for her rescuer to free her from the tower, when she knew better. But that did not stop her from looking her best - as best as it could be for Thanksgiving and joining the family - and that also meant that Ron was coming, with Rufus in tow. That meant awkward strain between them when they attempted conversation only to fail miserably. Even Tara looked helpless and wished she could do something.

"Have fun, girl," Monique told her as they parted ways for the holidays; she was off to her parents' for the weekend. "And tell me all about it when you get back."

"Don't push your luck," Kim returned with a wink as she locked the door of the apartment, as its occupants would be gone for awhile.

Her red-and-black plaid shirt was buttoned up enough to protect her from the autumn winds, and her black boots were on the outside of her matching jeans. She held her hair back just to show off her ears, which carried the latest - and maybe last - present from Monty even though she didn't need it...but it took her breath away with the stunning simplicity and knowing this was not his mother's, and that he had good taste.

The earring studs were actually citrine, but from afar they looked like amber, setting afire and blending in with her locks. There was no way she would ever stop wearing these...

She took the Sloth, her own car, and admired herself briefly in the mirror. Maybe Monty would find himself passing out? She hoped he would, she thought with a wry smirk - which faded when she found herself looking at the chain that held the locket, tucked safely beneath her shirt. Ron might ask questions, but she no longer cared. Anything to get them talking in private again...but that also meant _Monty_ would be there. It wasn't like she could force Ron to not come to dinner. They'd grown up together, for crying out loud. There was seldom a time he never came to dinner with her family.

Her mom had apparently been telling her dad about her issues with two men in her life, much to James' chagrin, but that was how a father was made to be. He might like Monty, wouldn't he? Sure, he would set a few things, making her laugh, but he wouldn't hate him.

Unlike Ron.

She reached the Possible house in no time, smiling at the crowd of people gathering and waiting for her. Parking in the driveway, she jumped out and ran up to her family. Her parents, Nana, the tweebs - and for now they were on friendly terms, but that would be short-lived - then Aunt June and cousin Larry who was more than excited to show her his latest edition to the club, but when she got to the last person, she had difficulty looking Ron in the eyes when they embraced, and the air radiated off of him, too. Rufus, however, jumped off his master's shoulder and pecked her on the cheek, making her laugh.

"KP?" Jade eyes met sad brown ones. "Can we at least...talk again soon?"

They barely uttered three words to each other, and he had no idea how to say the first words better, but he _was_ right. They needed to talk; they'd put this off long enough - but their chance didn't come yet because another car pulled up, and it was a taxi. Everyone around her was speechless as they didn't know who this was...but then excited chatter save for herself and her best friend arose when the man himself as well as his valet got out from the back.

Her heart leaped into her throat at the sight of the handsome Englishman in his crisp white shirt tucked into his tight dark trousers, and hair slicked. Should she add that she was glad to know the reactions from the ladies, the tweebs gawking, and her father raising an eyebrow while smiling deviously as he had a slight idea that his daughter had "chosen well"? Cousin Larry had followed him as long as she had, so for him, it was like a dream come true; you could definitely see the sparkle in his eyes.

But maybe not the same form as the one she knew she had, that he could definitely see as he approached her personally and then reached to take her hand into his, politely placing a kiss on the back. "Kimberly," was all he said, but when he turned his attention to Ron, his voice just about dropped to a hiss. "Ronald."

"Your Lordship," he retorted, narrowing his eyes.

"Boys, don't do this today," Kim begged, looking back and forth between them. They looked her way and then back at each other before nodding, but she had the bad feeling a breakout could happen and wished to death it wouldn't. Thanksgiving was never supposed to have a brawl before the family.

~o~

The last person he expected to see was the young buffoon here, and from the blaze in Ron's eyes, the last person he wanted to see was the "perverted monkey-obsessed loon"; Monty was not surprised that the word would apply in the younger one's eyes. The heated gaze did not last long as Kimberly's father, Dr. James Possible, a well-known rocket scientist, called everyone inside for the world-famous turkey his wife, a brain surgeon, had cooked up for them all.

Kim did not want them arguing again, and he had no desire for one, but he intended to settle it straight just for her sake. He still would not allow Ronald back at his castle - the decision still stood - but he would make sure the boy got it through his thick little skull that he truly meant no trouble, no harm, and that his suspicions were unfounded...and that was as far as he was willing to go to ensure Stoppable would no longer threaten him.

He was only willing to go so far if the youth stubbornly held onto his beliefs that Lord Fiske was "bad road".

"Ronald," he said in a hushed voice just as everyone went inside, and the young man stopped and fixed him without a smile, "we should clear some things up."

"That's what I'm talking about."

"For your sake, and for Kimberly's, I hope that we can come to an understanding of sorts," Monty went on, standing straight and clasping his hands behind his back. "Because I assure you for one more time that your paranoia is unfounded." His brows itched to furrow in his frown when the naked mole rat folded his arms across his chest. "We don't have much time, but I wish to know why you insist on voicing your loathing of me and monkeys - a field which has been my entire life." He allowed his smile to reach only one corner as he awaited the response.

"Why, because of the chimp that attacked me at Camp Wannaweep? That was the worst thing that ever happened to me, and you honestly think something like that will be forgotten after ten years? You have no idea what it's like to be traumatized," Ron snapped.

"Yeah!" the mole rat agreed.

Monty inhaled sharply through his nose as the simple words cut through him much deeper than he let it show outside. Oh, but he did...he knew exactly what it was like to be affected. But he would not say so and let the young man see his weaknesses. Instead, he released a form of it: "Oh, but I do. More than you would ever know."

The both of them turned when Kimberly called for them both. "You boys coming in or are you going to let Mom's famous turkey get cold?" she asked, half teasing and half serious.

"Oh, yeah, KP, we're coming," Ron said for them both, smiling just for her; she took the bait and pulled herself back in. He then turned his attention back to Monty. "If only I could ask now what you mean."

"Indeed," Fiske agreed. "But you should know that you judge too harshly for your own good, despite your good judgment. I am willing to let your episode at my castle slide, but I won't ever forget it; I can see in your eyes that you won't either, but that hardly concerns me. We will continue this another time, but if you know what is good for yourself and Kimberly, may we call a truce?" He extended a gloved hand from behind his back and waited impatiently before Ron hesitantly laid his own there, raising an eyebrow before relaxing.

For the time being.

 **Last April, I saw "In the Heart of the Sea" on the flight to Hawaii on vacation with my dad and best friend. And Antti Martikainen is a well-known epic composer on YouTube, and "King of the Highlands" is one of my favorites. :) His piece, "Xian", inspired me to do the goddess and story of my fic, "The Monkey King Takes His Queen".**

 **Ron and Monty have called the peace for now, but the settlements are far from over. Stay tuned. ;)**


	11. Birthday Thanksgiving Parade

Chapter Eleven

Birthday Thanksgiving Parade

Kim had heard it all from outside, and couldn't believe Monty made the move himself to call the truce - for now - between him and Ron. In a small way, Ron had gotten through to Monty that he had no idea what it was like to be nearly killed, or simply mauled, but she did not expect to hear His Lordship mysteriously intone:

 _More than you would ever know..._

How could she have forgotten about this when things had gone so well? Didn't Monty _hint_ that he had more flaws than she believed, that she couldn't...she was sure she knew, but never dwelled too much on it...

Monty never told her much about himself, including his mother, or anything personal besides no lady love, loathing of social appearances, having too few real friends, sheltering himself in his lonely castle - he raised more questions than before, and even though she had put this off long enough as she'd put off patching things up with Ron, right now she knew was no time for asking them. Knowing men like Monty Fiske, she would not expect it to be simple and ask him outright only to get the answers she wanted.

"You boys coming in or are you going to let Mom's famous turkey get cold?" she asked, breaking it up between them, drawing a smile from them both, but it was Ron who answered that they were coming. And they followed not long after her. She was happy they put aside their differences for her sake, but it took more than a single conversation to break the ice in a day.

When everyone gathered at the long dinner table, it would appear to be crowded because of the number of people when actually there was more than enough room. Pleasant conversation such as Larry bringing up his club's latest only for his mother to stop him in time to tell him he was boring the non-nerds and making his face fall, but it did light up when he turned his attention to Monty Fiske, the man he had studied as long as Kim had, who in return politely thanked him for his interests. The tweebs had to ask him if he was a grave robber if he was called an archaeologist, to which their parents warned them both about their manners. Kim had never felt so embarrassed because of them; Jim and Tim might never grow up, it seemed.

Nana just had to hit on him in front of everyone at the table, but it seemed Monty was more flustered than she was. His cheeks brightening were proof of it even though he only smiled. Bates? The pity was clear in his eyes, but her family also welcomed him in, too. He was taking it modestly because servants didn't usually get much attention.

Some time during dinner, she caught him looking at her, but it wasn't staring. It seemed like he was telling her that he wanted to talk to her but not now; it made her raise an eyebrow, knowing it had to do with his master.

A tiny part of her brain sparked: maybe she could talk to Bates, and maybe he could answer any of her questions.

When dinner ended, Nana was staying for the night before her plane arrived tomorrow. Jim and Tim were heading off to be with their girlfriends they had now, but not before Anne pulled them aside and gave the more of "the talk", which made Kim laugh. Seeing this, Monty sniffed as he joined her side.

"What mother doesn't want the best for her son?" he said in a hushed voice.

"Yeah, I know, right?" She tilted her head around to see his face perfectly stoic. "What was your mother like?" she asked carefully.

Nothing in his expression changed, and his tone was equally firm. "She was very strong for a woman of her time. There were very few like her to withstand society and an arranged marriage just because she came from a good family. Just like you, she was what every woman should be." When he finally looked down at her, a smile slowly pulled the corners of his mouth. "When my father died, it was her, Bates and myself."

So, his father died when he was very young, and all he had was his mother as well as the valet? He told her enough now, but was that everything? The underline of his voice hinted that he did not wish to reveal everything at once, and that was good enough. She smiled in return. "What was her name?" That was the last one she would ask him for today, and he didn't hold his tongue.

"Anne."

"That's my mother's name, too," Kim said, laughing with him. How funny was that?

Now she found herself looking at her own mother with the twins, and found herself wondering if Monty's was in any way like Anne Possible was, besides the fact she owned her identity, in the fact she was really a good mother and positive role model to her son.

~o~

Ron always looked forward to Thanksgiving dinner with the family; his parents had Hana who was now five, and they were away in Los Angeles for the weekend. The City of Angels - which turned out to be the city of drugs, alcoholism, and all forms of downfall. Even young people who sought the kind of glamorous attention ended up getting more than they bargained for.

And let's just say he got more than HE bargained for when Lord Monty Fiske had to come to the dinner because Kim wanted him to, and her family wanted to meet him. Mr. and Mrs. Dr. P both liked him, Jim and Tim were just being themselves when they joked that their older sister "got a new boyfriend" much to her annoyance and embarrassment. But the man himself merely smiled and stated that he was nowhere near "low-base" and "disrespectful of a lady", which caused a light to shine in James Possible's eyes and spared a man-to-man chit-chat. But Ron wasn't interested in how the family took a shine to the world-class bad road.

Okay, so he agreed no more fighting, just for Kim's sake, but a single eye-lock with Monty meant that they were not done with this.

He'd always known that Fiske wouldn't let the incident at his castle go that easily, not that Ron hadn't either. Those monkey texts, specifically that one on Monkey Kung Fu - what was he up to? He didn't get the chance to even finish when the butler showed up, and damn the distraction of _The Arabian Nights_!

"Guess this means I'm no longer welcome in Kim's life, little buddy," he said sadly to Rufus, who bowed his head mournfully and whimpered. "It looks like she chose him over me - and it's my fault, I guess."

"Lord Fiske isn't as bad as you think he is."

"Oh, uh!" he exclaimed, turning around to see that Bates had found him, claiming he needed to go to the bathroom, but didn't. It was after the dinner that the family was sticking around, with the twins actually speeding away to their girlfriends, and there was a gathering in the living room that Ron needed to just peep around and see how Monty was faring around a loving family - and it was then that he found himself softening when he unwittingly looked into the eyes of his hated adversary.

Monty's sharp cerulean orbs carried uncomfortable relaxation, as if he'd never done anything like being around a normal family for a simple, warm and welcoming gathering. Kim saw this, too, and she was trying to make sure he was comfortable. Ron watched carefully and tried to detect anything he didn't like, but nothing more than a tender gaze upon each other's faces. If her parents and Nana, Aunt June and cousin Larry, noticed, then they didn't say anything. It was then that Bates surprisingly showed up beside him.

They were both standing outside the den and speaking in low voices. "Care to tell me more?" Ron asked as soon as he pulled himself together.

Bates sighed and scratched the back of his neck. "Well, I'm not sure how much you know what upper class society is like where we are from, son, but he was often forced to attend social gatherings whether he liked it or not. His mother, the late Lady Anne Fiske who had been widowed before she gave birth, strongly believed in protecting him, but often did she relent for the sake of their family's reputation. She and her husband were respected explorers and scholars as he is now, but after her husband was killed, she withdrew back into the family castle to put her son before everything else. She was everything to him, and I was the father Monty never had."

The muscles in his lips twitched as he struggled not to cry. In his younger years, he was what you would call the outcast because of the goofball he was, but that was why Tara loved him and why Kim called him her best friend for life. To know that Monty Fiske, the man who loved what he hated, had lived similarly but tolerated life for the sake of his family name, then grew into somewhat of a cold man - he didn't know what to think now. He had his gut feelings still in place, but there was also now a part of him that sympathized and related in terms of lifestyle.

"He had no friends, did he?" he managed. Rufus chattered nervously and jumped down into his pocket to hide and blow his nose inside. Bates shook his head, closing his eyes.

"Nor did he go to school like other boys and young men, but he was hired the best tutors over the world. He was adamant about becoming what his parents were, but it was also his own natural drive for the adventure and to seek great things. He went to the very same university his parents attended, but there were times where I worried for him, as it was as though the weight of his parents' legacy was growing on his shoulders. His mother died ten years ago, so he has no living family left...other than myself."

His heart broke and did the real crying for him now, and poor Rufus couldn't keep himself together now.

"I still don't trust him, but I see I let my reactions get the best of me. I don't trust monkeys any more than I trust the people who love them..."

"But are you willing to give him a chance?"

It took Ron a long moment to think this over before nodding as he continued to fight back his burning tears.

~o~

He was not sure how to describe how he felt by the time the sky darkened, and it was time for him and Bates to return to the lodge. "I'll be right there, milord," his valet told him, making him raise an eyebrow. "I have some words to exchange with Miss Possible and Mr. Stoppable."

"Oh...I see." He suspected there was more than Bates was telling him, but he didn't press. He slid into the back of the taxi and watched from his side with a frown as Bates turned his back to the vehicle and formed a small circle with the young pair. Was it his imagination - or was a conspiracy against him in the making?

He didn't detect anything suspicious other than Kimberly's expression going from thoughtful to surprise and eventually smiling and nodding at whatever Bates said; as for Ronald, he was difficult to read other than easily agreeing. Monty was not sure whether to like this or not, but it was safe to assume it was no sabotage plot or assassination attempt on his life. When Bates arrived and sat beside him in the back, he expected his valet to say something, but Bates was smiling as if nothing had happened. He snorted and knew his old caregiver better than that.

~o~

They took the Sloth the next morning to the lodge where he and his valet were staying, and her nerves were on fire. Both from excitement and being nervous. Bates had pulled her and Ron together outside her parents' house, her childhood home, and had spoken to them with a last-minute surprise.

"His Lordship's thirty-sixth birthday is tomorrow, but he had no cause to celebrate it."

"Really, that's weird!" Ron had exclaimed, putting his hands in his pockets, and Rufus jumping out and yelping, climbing atop his master's shoulder. "Why can't he celebrate his own birthday like everyone else?" Kim had been expecting him to say something more...dramatic, but he didn't.

Bates' response was as sad as it was talking about the man's late mother. Ron had confided in her just after master and valet left for the night. She and Ron stayed the night to reconnect with old, familiar surroundings and to simply sit before the TV, relaxing comfortably. "He stopped celebrating it when his mother died the day before, ten years ago. It was by then that he began to feel a little older than he was, and to know how short life is - it's a cruelty. He strongly believes there is still so much to do, and the fact that he acknowledges his age threatens to stunt him. He wants to be younger than he is now, when someday soon, he won't be. I myself won't be around much longer in maybe a few years, but then he will be left alone...and there is a part of me that can't stand him having no other to look after him."

She wasn't sure if she showed it on her face, and Ron sure didn't except in his eyes, but to imagine Monty Fiske alone like this...it was beyond intolerable. She didn't want to just abandon him then, and it seemed a simple working relationship was out of the question. No living relatives, no friends...her heart clenched again, and by the time the taxi took away Middleton's guests for the night, and Ron was heading back into the house, she put her hand over her heart in which the locket was still hidden behind her shirt, the cool silver igniting the engine again.

Kim lost some sleep that night just thinking about this, not before she, Ron and Rufus were in her room discussing what Bates said. "I gotta tell you, Kim," he'd said, "Monty's a real loner. More than I thought he was."

"More alone," Rufus agreed as he snacked on some leftover turkey.

"You're going soft on him now, are you?"

"Hey, I still don't like him and his crazy monkey love, but somehow...I kind of relate to him."

"Relate to him how?"

"Think about it, Kim: I was the outcast in school. With my exception of having both parents, later Hana being adopted into our family, he's no different than me, except he never went to a real school, never had friends, and the only person he ever knew besides his butler was his mother," Ron had said, throwing his hands in the air. "I bet he never had a girlfriend either; it's no wonder why he's obviously still single." She'd sighed and lowered her gaze to the surface of her bedding and agreed with him on everything.

Now she and Ron parked in front of the Middleton Lodge where the two men waited outside the entrance, and the short man himself opened the back for his master to slide in before following him and slamming the door shut. "So, do tell me where we are going today," Monty said.

"You'll love it, old chap," Ron said cheerily, earning a sniff.

"I find it unlikely. I won't pretend to not know why the three of you are scheming against me. I'm sure Bates did tell you why I don't...celebrate these things," he said coolly. Kim's grip on the wheel broke into sweat.

"Trust him when he says you'll love it, Monty. We have this event every year, and today is the last day."

"Last day for what?"

She sighed in a little agitation. "Just trust us on this? If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise." She shared a glance with Bates in the rearview mirror and winked with him, much to the annoyance of his master, who let out a frustrated sigh and folded his arms across his chest and muttered something under his breath. He hated surprises unless HE made them for someone else. It made her laugh that she, her best friend and the loyal manservant had to give him a taste of his own medicine.

The event itself was happening just outside Smarty Mart, and the people were gathering on the green as they watched it happen in the streets - the colorful splashes of paper and sprinklers, the giant balloon characters consisting of the Thanksgiving turkey and pilgrims, and there were also dancers in suggestive costumes whilst not exposing _everything._

Monty gaped in shock at what he saw when the four of them - well, five - including Rufus - gathered and held their coats close to themselves because of the chilling late November temperature. Nearby was a hot cocoa stand, and two more further away. "A p-p-parade?!" he exclaimed. "Honestly!"

"Milord," Bates implored him, "everything is on me."

"Of course it is!" he snapped. "I made this clear a long time ago, but of course, words are nothing."

Ron made an exasperated sound. "Aw, come on, why do you have to be so cranky and avoid the day that marks the beginning stage of your life and helps you keep track of it?" he asked.

"It serves to remind me of how _short_ my lifetime is - how short it is for anyone, in fact. That's nothing worth celebrating over."

Kim got to thinking that his mother's death the day before ten years ago had caused him to instill that belief, saddening her more than ever. If Monty refused to acknowledge his own birthday, then he must not care about anyone else's. His true colors were showing more and more everyday. She wasn't sure if she was going to like this side of him - but she had to remind herself no one was perfect.

Eric had been perfect...but he was a fake and reminded her of harsh reality. It was not as easy as taking down the bad guy.

"Monty," she said, breaking it up, "we did this for you, and you've been so good to us all, so the least you can do is thank us for returning something to you."

His reaction was just as she expected, stricken speechless. She saw it in his eyes: he was starting to see her feistier side as she had begun to see his.


	12. So the Drama

Chapter Twelve

So the Drama

"Monty, we did this for you, and you've been so good to us all, so the least you can do is thank us for returning something to you."

Who was she defending, Bates? Her friend? Or was this all her doing? He did not know what to think at the moment. Just why should he be doing this? They had dragged him out of the lodge when Bates knew good and well that his birthday was out of the question. He knew there was something; he just _knew_ it. He seethed inside when he looked into Kimberly's expressive emeralds. She lifted her chin at him and challenged him with her eyes when words were done for.

She was _daring_ him to say something smart. It seemed her sweet nature had limits, after all, as much as his own patience drew lines.

"Kimberly, you really should not have troubled yourself with this. I have no cause to enjoy my birthday in a long time..."

"That was in the past," she insisted, reaching for him and taking his gloved hand into hers, causing him to flinch, but she didn't seem to notice. A faint blush appeared on her cheeks, but it was unknown if it was her own embarrassment at her bold action or due to the autumn chill. "Just try and have some fun? You haven't even had any in a while. You know what they say? All work and no play can drive a man insane." She winked; behind them, Ronald, Bates and the naked mole rat stifled their snickers. Monty bared his teeth when he turned his face halfway around to them.

He gritted his teeth. "Very well."

Her face brightened. "So, you'll relax and enjoy the parade? And afterwards we'll take you to eat?" she asked sweetly. He sighed; she was spoiling him too much when he didn't deserve this. No one had done anything like this to him for a long time. The only memorable moments were the trips to the zoo with Anne and Bates.

Besides, wasn't it Bates who always told him that a little trip outside the castle once in awhile was in order?

"Forgive me for my rash attitude," he said, bowing his head once. "I have not done anything like this in years. I am not used to being...treated like this. Never have I enjoyed company in this form, or in your family's for that matter."

She lowered her eyes. "You need this more often." Now she was sounding more like Bates, making him feel warier. More exposure to activities like this meant...no, he handled shielding his secret his entire life; he could do this. Yet he knew he had to one day find it in himself to trust her with it.

"KP, how about I get us all the cocoa?" Ronald suggested, earning an excited response from his naked mole rat.

"Cocoa!"

"I'm going with him, milord," Bates announced, following him to the second stand with the shorter line. Leaving him alone with Kimberly and watching the festivity before them, and he found himself smiling now - before a snide feminine voice broke behind them.

"Well, Miss Priss, long time, no see."

Monty raised an eyebrow at the young woman with short brown hair that reached her ears, her green eyes bordering on poison than a rich gemstone like the one beside him, who was not at all pleased to see this one. "Bonnie."

~o~

She had not seen her high school adversary and fellow cheerleader since graduation, but after moving to Lowerton, there was no word on how she'd made her life work after failing her last week of school and failing to turn in a book to Mr. Barkin, as well as going through summer school, getting the credit late and ending up going to community college late. Kim remembered her and Senor Senior, Jr. going strong, but she bet her money it wouldn't last because of the kind of person Bonnie Rockwaller was.

But it seemed she was wrong. Seeing the ring on her old enemy's finger was obvious proof. Her stomach lurched at the sickeningly vivid pink, pear-shaped diamond on a plain silver band. Simple luxury were two words to give it away. "Let me guess, you and Junior," Kim stated, raising an eyebrow and forgetting Monty was there.

Bonnie's laugh was as condescending as it was a long time ago, flashing it without shame. "Next month, before the New Year's ends. His daddy has been helping with the planning, and he's the best father-in-law ever."

"He treats you like his precious princess like his little prince does."

She laughed. "Which you have missed out on. I see you're still single, K," she said, smirking cruelly that it made the redhead snap inside and growl through her teeth.

"What makes you think I am still without a stinking BF?" she snapped.

"It's obvious, isn't it?" Bonnie gave the air a sniff before raising her cocoa cup to her face and blowing over it before taking a small sip to avoid getting her tongue burned. "You graduated high school on time, I didn't - but I got a boyfriend whom I'm getting married to at the end of next month in a grand ballroom, but do _I_ see _you_ with a soulmate after the fake one? If I didn't know any better, I'd say you are taking the coward's way and continuing to avoid giving your fragile little heart another chance."

COWARD!

Her buttons were pushed one too many times that Kim really wanted to punch the other woman in the face in front of all these people. But instead, she took a few breaths to calm before speaking icily. "Speaking of another chance - have you decided to move back to Middleton? Has Lowerton rejected you because of your pathetic attempts to get to the top?" she sneered.

Bonnie's eyes went wide before reverting to narrowed slits. "I'm only in town for the parade. Junior isn't into these things as much as lounging by the pool and still trying to become a pop star," she answered smoothly. The Seniors had retired from their lives of crime and together opened a small business regarding rising young pop stars like the son himself tried to be; managing younger groups and solos coming in could not be worth Junior's time. Kim had to laugh that Bonnie might get tired of it all eventually.

"It does beat your predicament, doesn't it, Kim?"

"Miss, you really wish to cause a riot on a day like this?" Both women turned at the accented voice, seeing the tall man with his hands clasped behind his back and narrowing his eyes specifically at the brunette. "We do not want you rubbing it in Miss Possible's face that you claim to be on the higher ground just because you have a boorish fiancée from a good family, when it is actually Kimberly who has done far greater things than you?" Monty's eyes shone with a hint of knowing malice that caused Bonnie to take a dismayed step back.

"Just who do you think you are?" she demanded, her fingers causing a dent in the plastic cup.

He chuckled and dipped his head forward once. "Lord Monty Fiske, at your service. I am..." He turned his glittering attention to Kim, who felt herself shrink a little. "...with Kimberly." Startled, she almost jumped when his arm boldly wrapped around her waist and held her to him, demonstrating to the antagonist herself.

Bonnie pulled herself together and gritted her teeth. "'Lord'? Kim really has sunken so low she has to rely on a rich man to take care of her now?" The redhead snarled at her, but it seemed that Monty was angrier than she.

"She need not rely on me, Miss...?" He raised an eyebrow at her, expecting an answer.

"Rockwaller."

"Miss Rockwaller," he repeated, the taste left on his tongue bad and clear to her ears. "If you know what is good for you, you crawl back to your boor and do not try me or my dear again. You should know better than to fool with what you cannot comprehend." He flashed her his teeth, which Kim suddenly noticed was bordering on the way a monkey would smile; the sight made Bonnie's face contort in visible shock.

"O-okay, this just got so much weirder." She locked a hard gaze with Kim. "Good luck with your new boyfriend," was all she said before she turned and stalked away. Kim watched her go with a sniff before turning a baffled eye back to Monty, freeing herself from his hold which he seemed to have forgotten was still around her. She had gotten a bit TOO comfortable in it herself.

"Uh...thanks. But why did you do that for me?" she asked timidly.

"She dishonored you and your integrity by attempting to push you into a...relation that you absolutely will not oblige to just because she has, or anyone else around you," he stated simply. "I know types like Miss Rockwaller at the university I teach sometimes; handfuls gain their status by the men on their arms...but not you." His smile was genuine. "What has she done that you haven't?"

"Well, I'm getting an education, for one, and a career when I'm done," she answered. "But I don't know about a relationship to bring to the table..."

He cleared his throat. "Does this have to do with the 'fake' that she spoke of?"

~o~

He'd known better than to think this day would not be without any issues, and he'd been nearby when he spotted the young woman approach Kim; he knew right away that she was trouble, even listened to their conversation and felt his blood boil.

The little wench had the gall to insult her like that! Use her betrothal status to rub it into the other's face, then mock her broken amorous life! Something bordering along protection festered within him that he had to step in and ensure Bonnie Rockwaller - fiancée of Senor Senior, Jr. and high school opponent of Kim Possible, even former fellow cheerleader - would stand away. Or perhaps he went too far when he wrapped his arm around Kim's body and held her against his, claiming she was his and ending the humiliation then and there.

 _His..._

Kim Possible was by far more than Rockwaller in that she had survived on her own - but then she wound up in Monty Fiske's life. While she could take care of herself, it seemed this time she needed HIM to help her out of this predicament. Even though their bodies did not connect the way they did when they escaped the water pit of the third jade monkey, the simple pressure of her form with his made him tremble instead of the breeze.

She watched with him her former enemy leave them be. That little...she had nothing of what this one beside him did, as she vocally made loud and clear. That girl stayed behind to catch up on missed work, failing to make it to the stars as Kimberly, and was marrying a spoiled rich boy when she could not do anything right herself. And yet, when she pointed out the one thing Kimberly had not been lucky with...

 _"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you are taking the coward's way and continuing to avoid giving your fragile little heart another chance."_

"Does this have to do with the 'fake' that she spoke of?"

"His name was Eric, and yes."

He remembered that detail from her book, that the handsome teenage boyfriend of Kathryn turned out to be a robot engineered by her arch-nemesis; it shocked him that Kim had said it actually happened to _her._ Her heart was affected as much as his was simply because of what he was. But he never got to ask her further because Ronald and Bates returned with the hot cocoa, and they returned to enjoy the parade.

His tongue burned with the chocolate sweetness, but Kim beside him and the fact she brought him out here had to be worth the troubles.

By the time afternoon was on the rise, he was in the backseat with Bates as she and Ronald drove them downtown for the promised lunch date. He raised an eyebrow that it had to be a place called Bueno Nacho which turned out to be their lifelong favorite dining spot at anytime...but by the end of it, Monty Fiske confessed to them as well as to himself that it was the first place where he felt comfortable and welcomed. The food itself was worth digesting even better than some in the Mexican locations when he was on a dig beneath the scorching sun.

"Well, I won't be too proud and not thank you both for this," he said when they pulled up at the lodge. "This was a day that isn't up to my standard of living...but it was worthwhile." He gave them both a smile of gratitude. The wild side of himself was threatening to burst within.

Later that evening, he was in his room as she was in hers, and they spoke via Kimmunicator - _Mont_ unicator on his part, which made them both laugh when he decided to name his own after himself, like her. It was time to finish their conversation before they were interrupted.

"I'd read about...Eric in your book, and I must say I'm a little surprised that you never changed his name," Monty said as he laid back in bed, raising his wrist to his face. His shoes and gloves were removed, away from her eyesight, so they breathed and functioned freely.

 _"He was never real, so I had no need to change anything,"_ she answered with a sad glint in her eyes. _"Everything you read about him was exactly what he was when..."_

Talking about him was difficult for her, and her faltering sentence was proof of that. "Perhaps I was too rash in asking you," he began, only for her to burst out.

 _"No, I want you to understand. Putting it all down on paper was closure for me, but it didn't erase what I am still feeling. He was the reason - actually,_ it _,"_ she added with a sniffle, _"was the reason I haven't been with a guy since then. He was just...so much like you. 'Eric' was everything I wanted in a boyfriend: handsome, witty and charming. He even seemed concerned about how he was affecting my relationship with my friends, willing to back off and give me the time to keep tight with them; he even charmed my father."_ Even on the screen, he saw the faint shine of a tear down her cheek which she became aware of and wiped off before continuing.

 _"But in the end, he only played me. He was artificial; why couldn't I see that he was just TOO perfect?!"_

Monty closed his eyes and exhaled, his chest rising and falling with each harsh breath. She was a good-hearted woman who suffered so much, not the same as he...but it was the same level of torture within. She deserved to have her heart opened to a man, but she could not be destroyed again. He could not do this to her; he himself was not perfect, but he was nothing like "Eric" either. He carefully removed his arm from beneath his head and brought his palm flat over his beating heart which was telling him that he ought to stop running and face the truth staring at him in his face. Two months of slowly getting to know this woman, and yet he felt like he had known her forever. She'd known him - not personally - long before then, but the cautious side of Monty Fiske insisted on taking this with ease.

One day at a time, she'd made him promise, and that was what it would be. One day at a time. He no longer saw this as the professional stage they had begun with; this had only blossomed into personal.

"No one is perfect," he said when he became aware she was waiting for him to reply, and it was not easy to answer. "Even I am not."

 _"And you always seemed like you were, when I was still a teen."_

He sighed. "There are some things about me which I cannot confide in you over, that you may flinch and cringe away at, Kimberly," he said tenderly. "Know that my example is my point to concede that there is no perfect man...but that does not mean you should take the easy way, because there is no such thing as the easy route." How true such words were, yet it was so simple to take the less treacherous way out; take his example.

She nodded and visibly swallowed. _"If I were to find love again, it'd be real and not like the way it had been. Someone who is...better than Eric,"_ she said, keeping her eyes on him. He cracked inside, keeping himself strong outside, loathing seeing her like this. Now was a good time to tell her; two months had been long enough.

"I could be so bold to say that I could be that man for you, if only matters were not so complicated," he confessed. "I've told you enough about myself, and you understood as I have understood you...but alas, some things are best left unspoken."

~o~

 _"I've told you enough about myself, and you understood as I have understood you...but alas, some things are best left unspoken."_

"Why are you not willing to trust me with everything?" she whispered, devastated now. After such a wonderful couple of days, he was listening to her about Eric - and he had blatantly said that he wanted to be there for her after what Eric had done to her. Correction: what _Drakken_ had done to her, using her weakness that was the "perfect guy" against her, to play with her while he hatched his schemes with Bueno Nacho and her father's cybertech...he nearly wrecked her entire life as he would have done to the rest of the world.

She never let her heart be captured again, because she could not be taken for a fool again, turning to pen and paper to make the other young women happy; they looked up at her for inspiration, but she was just as fragile as the rest of them, and the fact she was still alone did not make it any better.

And then a handsome, mysterious foreign adventurer - a man she'd gazed upon for years and admired for his passion and distinction - walked into her life, asking for her help and then began to embrace her, treat her like a person, and she in return did the same for him. She let him in on her despairing secrets, let him read her book, welcomed him to her family - and now he was telling her that while he could be the man she deserved, he was breaking her heart by telling her that there was something that he could not trust her with!

A scalding tear, molten like lava, seared her cheek again.

He was trying to distance himself from her.

"I'm afraid I am in too deep to accept this, Monty," she said softly. "If there is one thing I won't accept, it's rejection."

His eyes widened. _"Why, Kimberly, who ever said I was pushing you away?"_

"Because if you won't trust me in on any deep secrets you've kept locked away for so long as I have," Kim answered, putting a hand over her heart, over the locket itself, "then I'm not sure how I see a possible understanding coming between us." Another tear scorched her cheek, but she left it as before and sniffed. "I'm going to bed now. I hope you sleep well yourself." With that, she broke the connection without waiting for an answer, then turned to throw herself into the bedcovers, whimpering and blubbering in agony.

And she'd thought the holidays would be great with him here.

 **An old high school adversary taunts you about your demons, the man you idolized for a long time and now work alongside with now proclaims he will be there for you, but alas he cannot confide with his deepest abnormality - just a good way to end the holidays, right? :( That was sarcasm. Let's see what happens now.**


	13. Back to Professional

Chapter Thirteen

Back to Professional

 _The fires were warm and comforting to the senses. He'd left it running because he needed physical flaming heat to melt his being into sleep, given he could not rest without the turmoil returning with a vengeance._

 _But when he opened his eyes after a long, failed attempt to drift away, he was just considering leaving his comfortable bed and going through his routine until drowsiness claimed him when a flash of white briefly passed before his eyes. He blinked, wondering if he was dreaming - before a voice spoke audibly and confirmed he was not._

 _"My lord..."_

 _Sitting up, the silk and cotton sheets sliding off his body to reveal naked flesh, he turned around and saw the marvelous creature standing before the still-roaring fire. Had she kept it stoked, given only man could do that? But it was not the fire that enraptured him; it was her sultry body outlined within semi-sheer white trimmed with rosette lace, the sleeves short enough to bare her arms; you could see certain sensitive spots that it stirred the cells in his blood, increasing groups until one vast flame was spreading through his system. Wild hair cascaded over both shoulders and put the man-made pit behind her to shame._

 _"Why have you come?" he breathed, sliding out of the bed, the need shackling him and preventing him from escaping. Oh, he already knew, for what he was feeling was the answer. He stalked over to her and took her by both arms, not hard enough to bruise, and leaned down to attack her shameless mouth, tasting her like a fine exotic fruit. Her smell intoxicated his animalistic need; she moaned and bucked her body against his, his bare form craving hers, but this damned dress -!_

 _Pulling apart, he hissed and looked down to take in the sight of her curves and the dark peaks that drew the most attention. He reached to pull down the silk fabric, ripping it as she would no longer need these tempting clothes. The sound was harsh music to his ears, but her breasts were for his hungry eyes. "Oh!" she cried when he attacked them both, ravenously like they were fresh pieces of meat, but there were plenty more places to follow..._

 _She threw her head back and let him lavish attention upon her intimate curves, continued to when he rid her of the rest of the dress, throwing it into the fire before them both, the frail fabric turning to ash within seconds. He hoisted her up, her legs wrapping around his waist, and dropped them both onto the bed. The liquid fire was too great to take it slow, even though this was their first time together, and the sight of her insatiable body with his, writhing as he pulled in and out of her virgin sweetness, her cries of passion high with his to the ceiling of his ancestral walls, the fire behind them emphasizing what seared between their linked forms -_

~o~

He tried to meditate to erase his inner conflicts as well as what had been haunting him below his waist ever since waking to a bothersome stickiness which meant one thing. He snarled to himself as he fought so hard to bring his hand down there.

This was...this was...insanity at its finest!

Yet his body and his heart were saying otherwise.

 _It was bound to happen sooner or later..._

He was not going to trouble Bates with this, but last night lingered heavily on his mind. He could never forget the sight of her tear-stained face or the sound of her strangled voice and the abrupt cutting off of the signal. She didn't want him to see her break down; he didn't want to, either. He didn't purposefully push her away, yet he couldn't be completely honest with her. So many troubles that were coming between them...

"Bates, we must get going," he said on Sunday morning as they packed. Checkout time wasn't until noon, but he felt if he left Middleton and returned to London sooner, the better. He'd phoned his charter crew overseas and was pleased that they had managed to overcome their difficulties before the coming week. "I must get back to work soon - and that is to find the final statue."

His valet looked stunned for a moment before he returned to normal. "Of course, milord," was all he could say, and Monty was grateful.

Perhaps this was for the best after all, his mind was saying. The sooner the business with the jade icons was completed, his task fulfilled, the better -

\- but what about Kimberly?

His mind was in a haze as he stood at the counter to check out, his stomach lurching. He had not spoken to her since the day before, nor had she tried to communicate with him, and he had the hunch why. But he was not sure if he was doing most of the work, nor did he dwell on it further as the clerk repeated the question to him if he wanted any rewards in case he chose to return. Blankly, he nodded.

"You're not yourself, milord," Bates said as soon as they were in the back of the taxi and heading for the airport. "You haven't spoken to Miss Possible, nor have you bothered to see her before you left. You have plenty of time to drop by her house."

He gritted his teeth. "Just what do I tell her? Do I wound her further by discussing business instead of picking up where we left off?" He exhaled sharply and shook his head, looking out the window and at the peaceful scene that had passing families and groups of friends in the streets. Yet it was not part of his world.

And Bates' answer didn't make it any better. "If it's what it takes," he stated. "You made it loud and clear yourself, my lord, that this should have remained professional instead of personal - but alas, things have taken a different route, have they not?"

"If you hadn't schemed with them -!"

"But what did it give you, hm? It brought you a certain comfort I have not seen in you for years." Bates lifted his chin at him in defiance that it made the master angry. But he said nothing and instead ordered the driver to take them to the Possible residence.

~o~

"Better not stay away too long again, Kimmy cub," James told her with a kiss on the forehead that made her blush madly. Growing up had not put that nickname to rest, still.

"You'd better listen to your dad," Anne teased after an embrace. And last of all:

"HOOSHAH!"

"Bye, Mom and Dad," she said sweetly, then rolled her eyes. "Tweebs."

"Well, that was a booyah of a weekend, wasn't it?" Ron asked as they got to the Sloth. "I honestly think I had more fun than I remember in years. Your mom's turkey, the tweebs test-driving their latest rocket with Rufus as the pilot, Nana's latest hilarious adventures -"

She was unlocking the driver's door when she added, "And learning more about Lord Monty Fiske as well as taking him out for his birthday," she said with a small grin which faded as soon as she turned her back to him. She didn't want him to see how hurt she still was after a whole day and night of hearing no word from him. It felt worse than when she and Ron were avoiding each other. This was so stupid; they weren't children!

Monty was leaving today, and it was almost ten in the morning. The first plan on her mind before going back to her and Monique's apartment was to go to the lodge and speak to him, to mend a little bit without making their relationship awkward again -

"Kimberly."

"Monty!" He was standing so close to her that she hadn't realized he'd come back. "What are you doing here? I thought you were leaving."

"My charter won't leave for three more hours," he stated plainly. "I imagined I'd find you here. I regret how I have wounded your heart and behaved like a coward." He looked past her and pursed his lips in a thin line when he took in Ron still standing outside the Sloth, but he said nothing. Kim turned around.

"Ron, I'll be there."

He rolled his eyes. "Sure, KP." He slid in without another word. Rufus slapped his face with a paw.

"Kim," Monty repeated, drawing her attention back to him. This time his eyes were downcast, "I am not ignoring the turmoil I have established between us, but I want to assure you that I wish to continue our relationship, but the personal aspects will have to wait. I must go back to England and get to work right away, and then I will notify you as soon as I have its location." One corner of his mouth twitched, but no smile came. He must have thought that a smile wasn't appropriate at this time.

She wasn't sure if she wanted to smile either, because for the past day, smiling had hurt. "No big."

His gloved hand came back up to cup her cheek, and what he did next took her by surprise - he placed a brief kiss on her forehead. "In the meantime, may I inquire if you have gotten any...inspiration for your new book?" His eyes twinkled as if reading right through her. She flushed to her cheeks, remembering when it came to her while she'd spent the night at his castle.

"Yeah," she said softly. "I have ideas."

"I look forward to hearing sometime," Monty said with a tooth-baring grin. "Until then, Kim Possible."

She watched him go before she got into her driver's seat, feeling a hollow pit in her stomach, but knew it wouldn't last. Ron noticed, too, and so did Rufus, but they both looked at each other as if wondering what they could say or do for her, but frankly there wasn't much. What happened between her and Monty was between them both now. Her heart was aching again - and this time it was for him.

And when she thought about how he would be back on the hunt for the fourth jade monkey, her brain lit up like a giant bulb. He had given her so much lately that she knew she had to give him something bigger and better than just a Kimmunicator of his own. She'd tried to get him to open up to her, and he had - but he hinted blatantly that there were things that would make her stay away from him; it broke her heart to know that he wanted so much to trust her on whatever it was, but he couldn't risk it.

Perhaps what she would ask Wade to do for her would help earn that trust.

~o~

Not even two weeks passed since his return to England, and it was by then that early December was on the loom. He had tirelessly worked hard to find the accounts of where the fourth jade monkey would be, and so far nothing had happened. Several texts from southern Asia, and so close he came only to meet dead ends. Was fate being that cruel enough to play these games with him?

The conversation between himself and his friend from across the globe returned to light.

 _"You have one more statue to find, but this is the last time I will warn you. If you bring them together, the power will change you altogether. Remember what happened to the last man?"_

 _"That was thousands of years ago!"_

 _"Yes, but thousands of years changes nothing of the present day. There is only one who will obtain the power with nobler purposes, but not one who seeks it with his own reasons. Know I am only looking out for your well-being, for the sake of our families. Your father met his demise as did mine, so I do not wish for the same to befall on either of our parts."_

Monty squeezed his eyes closed and rubbed them both, the migraine growing stronger. He rarely took Aspirin, but maybe it was in order...

And then his Montunicator beeped in the same pattern as _hers_. He had been expecting it to be Kimberly, but it wasn't. "Oh, Mr. Lode, what a surprise."

 _"Lord Fiske,"_ the young tech genius replied with a broad grin, " _Kim and I have been busy that you might like this. Any luck with finding the fourth statue?"_

"No such," Fiske replied, raising an eyebrow, the idea slowly dawning on him, "but...I trust you have succeeded without my knowledge and are just now telling me?" The youth's answer erupted his core with pride and relief that he had to thank the lady herself and soon.

 _"Just that. The statue is in Cambodia."_

 **Wade's last name in some fics I read is said to be "Load", which is a nice representation of what he does for a living. :D And my fried daccu65 has it respelled as "Lode" in his stories.**

 **At long last, the final monkey statue to hunt. Stay tuned!**


	14. The Final Jade Monkey Statue

Chapter Fourteen

The Final Jade Monkey Statue

"Now...what to do here?" Kim muttered to herself. She'd been brainstorming for almost a week now, and December had just begun. There was no title for her new book yet, given when she did _Kathryn's Journey_ , the title made the difference for the entire story and hooked the readers' attention. The same thing applied here.

She had to first pick a name for the lead heroine, because if this would be different from Kathryn, she had to have a new name and new appearance. Kathryn had been down to earth and innocent, whilst this new one was sexy in appearance and fierce in attitude - which represented what she had gone through in her own life, but she would _never_ give herself credit and call herself hot. Plus, Kathryn had been a soulful brunette with brown hair and eyes - but this new one she had yet to envision.

She already picked out a name: Iris. The flower of the name represented wisdom, faith, hope, cherished friendship as well as a promise to love. With that in mind, a pair of bright green eyes and red hair came to light - and this was more truly her than the first book ever turned out...

...in addition with the one she would possibly fall off her feet for, who was tall, dark and handsome like a certain nobleman.

Kim pulled the top of her laptop down, closing the monitor for the short time being. No sense in stressing. The reason she'd made her first leading lady the opposite appearance of herself was just to distance herself from fantasy in younger years, but this time she wanted to put as much of herself in as possible. She wanted inspiration close to the heart.

Just at that moment, the Kimmunicator was ringing. "Wade, what's the - oh!" she exclaimed when she saw not Wade, but - "Oh, Your Lordship!"

He raised an eyebrow, visibly stifling an amused chuckle. _"Have I caught you at a wrong time?"_ he purred. _"I was just completing the last of my search - but I couldn't have done it without you and your friend Mr. Lode."_

"It was the least I could do," she said, grinning. "Could it be the exact location? Wade has his ways of going where no one has gone before."

 _"I confess, I never have allowed outside help to pick up where I couldn't go. I have almost never had this happen to me before. I can take care of everything myself."_

"Well, help once in awhile doesn't hurt," she told him, giggling. "You asked for me the first time." She blinked. Had it really been three months since they met? Time seemed to go on forever...

 _"There is a part of me that regrets not thinking about you at first,"_ Monty confessed sadly, _"because I'm often too proud to let another have their way and smile that I give in."_ Kim quirked an eyebrow at that; sometimes you had to let your pride down and do what's needed of you.

She let her attention fall to the surface of her closed laptop where the rough outlines of her story were currently waiting. "I bet you thanked Dr. Reeves for that."

He snorted. _"Indeed, but I'm only willing to go so far."_

"Man, someone should get you out of the house more often."

 _"Excuse me, but what exactly is that supposed to mean, Miss Possible?"_ he exclaimed with mock-outrage, making her laugh.

"It means that you need more lessons in humility and thanks. You've been around only Bates too long to harden up around humans. I've known that the moment we met." She stopped herself there, wondering if bringing up his late mother would push a button in the wrong place. She'd died the day before his birthday ten years ago, which clearly affected him that much. "You're dedicated to your work only."

He sighed and lowered his eyes. _"I pray there is not a special reason for pointing it out, Kimberly."_ He raised them again, freezing her on the spot. _"Alas, I should change the topic to the word of choice,"_ he said with a cracked grin. _"We should take off for Cambodia as soon as possible. I am making way ahead of time and departing as early as tomorrow morning."_

"Soon enough?" Kim sat up higher in her chair. The cheer-offs were on Friday, which was three days from now. If they would be done in time, then she could get back here with the squad.

 _"Yes, is there something wrong?"_ Monty's raised eyebrow indicated that he might have intruded on asking her if she could accompany him as planned. _"I can always go into the temple alone if you have better plans..."_

"No!" Kim said quickly, nervously. "No, but are you going straight there, and Ron and I will follow you there?"

His expression changed immediately to a wry smile. _"Unless you want me to send an acquaintance to pick you up. I won't let the lady herself have the troubles herself,"_ he said suggestively.

She stretched her back, feeling the bones pop. "See you in Cambodia then."

~o~

 _"So, I did the calculations that the first statue was found in Japan -"_

 _"Correct. It was discovered long before I was born, by my parents nonetheless."_

 _"So this deal about the jade monkeys is a life's pursuit?"_

 _"In every sense, yes."_

 _"And the second was uncovered in India, then the latest in South America."_

 _"What clues have pointed to the final in Cambodia, hm?"_

 _"Maybe it's best to say that my sources aren't incorrect."_

 _"Not the answer I was looking for, but very well, I shall trust your word, young man."_

Monty chuckled to himself as the conversation echoed in his mind, and now he was in the very place closer to home.

He and Bates were now in Cambodia, to which they now stood before the temple that appeared the same as the others on the outside - but who knew what primitive traps lay within its depths. The valet swallowed as he opened up the parasol and put it over their heads as they stood in the beating Cambodian sun. His own skin was already breaking out into sweat. "Monkeyosity at its finest," Bates muttered. "Let's hope the collection brought together was worth a lifetime."

"So do I...but I'm quite confident," the lord replied, swelling inside with excitement. Now, what word was used in the old warning? Insanity? If that was what it took to fulfill his birthright, so be it.

Was it just the sun, or had his train of thought changed on its own? If Kimberly found this out, would she...incarcerate him despite her feelings? He swallowed, trying hard to not dwell on the dreaded future - and then fate guided him down the path by allowing her voice to once more fill his senses.

"Gentlemen."

"Miss Possible, it is good to see you," Bates said, trying to remain the more optimist instead of Monty for a change, and he wasn't sure if he liked this. His attention was too focused on the sight of the monkey temple in front of them all and dwelling on what he could do once he had what he wanted...

A hand laid on his shoulder, causing him to jump. "Monty?" Kim looked at him with wide-eyed concern. "Is something wrong?"

"Oh, ahem...not at all." He cleared his throat. "Just a lot on my mind. Have I ever thanked you and your friend for finding this for me?" he asked with a smile she returned.

"Maybe once."

Ron stuck his nose in between them. "Not to butt in on purpose, but the sooner you two get that monkey statue out -" He shuddered, trying not to chatter his teeth and causing two rolls of the eyes on both his part and Kimberly's. "- the better."

Smirking, Monty turned his attention away back to the gaping mouth of the monkey. "I couldn't agree more." He lowered his voice so neither of them heard but himself. "Destiny awaits."

~o~

"M-maybe a back way in this time is better," Ron called up to them just as she and Monty were heading into the jaws of the temple - or should she say, ironically, the jaws of _death?_ "You both don't even know what is there, what about another water trap?"

Fiske gave the air a sniff of contempt. "No, you are right, Ronald, but this is a risk we are willing to take. To even think about taking the so-called easy way in would be a coward's error. Even if the traps are far more dangerous, we will stay on our toes, won't we, Miss Possible?" he asked her with a wink.

Kim gave their surroundings another glance, at the darkness ahead as well as the overbearing monkey faces on either side of the entrance. What could be different about this one? She remembered the one in Brazil too well, and the one before it had spikes and poison darts, but she didn't have her chance to ask him about the one before that - which Wade had slipped to her was LONG before Monty Fiske had been born. His parents had been the ones to find the one that started it all...

"Um, yeah, what's the worse that can happen here?"

And she spoke too soon, regrettably. For as soon as she and Monty took another step forward, the ground was no longer beneath their feet. Too late, she saw the eyes of the great statue light up vivid green at the same time she and her partner stepped on a trap door they never knew was there. Their names were screamed by both sidekick and valet.

"KIM!"

"LORD FISKE!"

She and Monty might as well be screaming together, the sound echoing in her own ears as they fell through the pit. What could be waiting for them down there? A water pit? Acid? Spikes? Or something else they never expected?

Guess it was the last one, after all. They both landed on all fours on solid ground, in a corridor lined with numerous monkey faces matching the face of the temple above the ground. Monty stood and dusted himself off, laughing - and that was when she noticed how he really DID sound like he was one of them, but before she could think further, they were greeted with a surprise.

The jaws were _moving._ Opening and closing, clamping in a pattern like Morse code. "Well, one fun fall to another!" Monty exclaimed. She had to laugh.

"Yeah, and at least the walls aren't -" She stopped when the opposite of what she was going to say happened. Kim stifled a groan. "- moving!" She exclaimed when he picked her up by the hips with both hands and tossed her over the mouth of the nearest wall icon and followed her.

"No time to chat, my dear! Move!"

Her muscles were used to this kind of strain, but the walls closing in on you and threatening to crush you to death, your remains never to be found, was something of a first time for her. He was beneath her and letting her lead; she could not block him and leave him or the both of them to die like this. She was out first, followed by him, and she was the one to pull him to safety once more. The closing walls banged shut, sending smoke into their faces. Kim coughed and waved it away. He did the same before looking up at her.

"Like I said: this is by far the deadliest," he said, ruffling his hair and blowing some debris out of his mouth. The sight was so funny she almost burst into a fit. He narrowed his eyes at her even though they twinkled. "Is there something amusing about this?" he asked when they started walking. A doorway was ahead of them, faint light coming in that flashlights were not necessary.

"Nothing at all, milord." She tried to mimic how Bates called his master, and this did earn a brief smirk from the man.

The stairs appeared to be harmless, but there was a chance any of them could give way beneath them, or maybe wherever they led to would be the trigger. If falling almost to death or getting crushed by walls weren't bad enough -

"God, where is that coming from?!" she cried, throwing both hands to her ears, him doing the same. The sound was vicious, monkey screeching coming from who knew where. It was the kind that could haunt your dreams with a vengeance, cause your eardrums to burst.

They were over within moments after they made it to the top of the stairs. Monty blew a sigh of relief. "They were telling us we are getting close."

"You speak monkey?" she teased, making him frown.

"I'm the world's leading simian expert, remember?" he reminded her. "I even worship Darwin's theory that we descended."

She had been so distracted in listening to him that she didn't pay attention to where they were going ahead - and soon found herself hanging on a ledge with her "bare" hands, several decades of feet from the floor...and it was filled with spikes. This temple wasn't as vast beneath the ground like the one before it, but Monty was right: it had more lethal surprises than the past. "Kimberly!" he shouted as he reached for her, but he stopped midway when he looked past her, and gasped, but it was not directed at the spiky pit waiting to penetrate the bodies of its next victims. Shockingly so, there were a few skeletons of those before them. Maybe very few to none who were common thieves tried to take the prize and didn't measure the consequences of their greed.

"Monty, what is it?" she asked, holding onto him whilst craning her neck far enough to look down again...and now she saw the shine below. The last jade monkey was in the center. "Oh, it's there!"

"Yes, but the spikes are a bothersome setback," he said irritably.

Spikes, which was the worst case scenario after the walls before - "Yeah, gee, and what are we missing? Snakes?" she said sarcastically, which she just was if only - "Oh, great."

From either side of her, deadly green slithers creeped out and bared their cobra fangs at her and Monty, and yes, she was pulling him into this because he continued to hold onto her. "Don't worry, I won't let you go," he swore to her, but he had no intentions to pull them both back up when they were close now. Their lives had been on the line from the moment they set foot here. She had an idea and pulled them both down and falling towards the shards of death. He roared and held onto her. "KIMBERLY!"

"HOLD ON!" she yelled back, pulling her hair from its ponytail and using the elastic band as the best tool to snatch a branch that had grown inside the tomb over the centuries - and they were safe once again. He had wrapped his arms around her waist, tightly, as she grasped onto her band that saved them. Now they could plant their feet to the floor without worry for the stakes that were as tall as they were.

He was the first to stand, but he continued to hold onto her which made her feel a little awkward. "Lord Fiske - I think you can put me down now."

"Of course."

They made their way over to the pedestal where the item was, the eyes no different than the last's. "The last jade monkey," Fiske breathed. The look on his face was pure joy like a child giddy over a new toy. He didn't bother to ask her to get the statue this time, not that she minded, but when he did, the room began to shake as the spikes as well as the pedestal slipped into the ancient earth. Kim half-expected the floors to crumble and take them down to their deaths this time, but it didn't happen.

Instead, the whole floor elevated upwards and tilted so they were both sliding together down south...and through another door that appeared and brought them through another tunnel. Kim wasn't sure if she was yelling again, because he sure wasn't, whilst keeping a good hold on the statue as if it were his child...

...and then the rolling was all over. Her body throbbed, sure to have bruises for awhile, and her hair was plastered with sweat. She lay flat on her stomach, grunting and grimacing as she pulled herself up before the man who knelt beside her, cradling their trophy which was the last of the collection. "Kim, Monty!" They looked up to see Ron and Bates over them, both clearly worried but relieved to see them with the monkey idol intact with them. Last time was the charm.

~o~

Night had fallen by the time they pitched camp. He was sitting before the statue in his tent while Bates was setting up the fire with the help of Kimberly and Ronald. He could not wait; he had to relish this moment, thrilled to his core that after all these years, the wait was going to be worth it. Completed before his prime was at its end, a few more years left...

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that your interest holds more than meets the eye. It's not just to simply study them and add to the collection, am I right?"

Somehow he'd counted she would show up. Looking up to see her peeking in through the zip-up entrance, pulling the "door" back, and smiling slightly, he managed one of his own. "Curiosity killed the cat, Kimberly," he replied, sitting back on his knees. However, today's events in which they had together braved a series of deathtraps far worse than those in Brazil made him realize that perhaps he could trust her a little more on this. She was a smart woman, and Bates and Anne once said that sooner or later, women would find out the truth.

She snorted and walked in, sitting down beside him. "Lord Fiske..." There was a warning edge, but he wasn't intimidated. "...we've survived a near-death experience, so the least you can do -"

"Alright, I'll tell you more about this. I owe you this much. You already know it was a life's pursuit for me. My parents were the ones who found the first jade monkey, not long before my mother found out she was pregnant - and with me none other," Monty explained, feeling a twinge. "They acquired it in Japan; they were both respected archaeologists as I believe you remember, but when they learned of the legend of the Mystical Monkey Power, my father was the one to suggest they search for the first statue as the first true original discovery in a long time for the museum. In truth, his father had the information because it had been in his family's possession for generations."

He lowered his attention to the deep eyes of the statue, feeling himself drown in them. "The legend goes that this icon along with the three others at the museum were to be brought together, and when they did, they gave the great power. In fact, thousands of years ago, the temple we braved as well as the last one and the two before were built by a group of ninja warriors who mastered the art of Monkey Kung Fu - also known as _Tai Shing Pek Kwar._ " His smile tugged both corners of his mouth. "According to my mother, my father learned it when he was a young man along with a friend of his in far-off Japan...which was where the first temple was located, deep within the mountain the prestigious marital arts school was located. My mother wasn't exactly in favor of this, because she erred on the side of caution despite the thrill she shared with my father." Monty finally found himself making eye contact with her. Her entire face was schooled with awe and fascination. "But she knew what she had gotten herself into when she married a fellow archaeologist. She wasn't a master of Monkey Kung Fu as my father, but he protected her at every turn they made each time they ventured into an ancient tomb over the world - and this time was no exception.

"However, the both of them nearly died when this site was beyond what they encountered thus far, even though they were still in their young lives. Blades whirled out of the walls in their way, and they were not alone, either. When Thomas Fiske, my father, was a student at the ninja school, his only real friend was a native and lifelong of his until later on in life. They were close-knit, and his friend had married a fellow student. But everything changed when my parents ventured into the one place that shattered their lives. His old comrade tried to stop them both from taking the monkey statue from its resting place, but when my mother was forced to seize the opportunity and take the statue while the two old friends fought...and that was when the tomb began to rumble. It happened to be within a volcano, so lava was streaming in. It was then and there that my parents had to be free, and his old friend sacrificed his life so that my mother and father would be saved. It seemed he had dishonored himself by letting a mystical prize be taken when it never should have."

Monty had to pause there, his heart pounding and his lungs constricting as he poured what had lived in the depths of his family's history for so long. It was so sensitive a tale that he'd had a hard time believing it when he was a child. "Mother told me that even though Father made a great discovery that day, they would have perished, and when they returned to England, he suffered an out-of-the-blue withdrawal in that he never forgave himself for the betrayal and loss of his friend, whose widow was carrying their firstborn son - as I, too, had been conceived shortly before they found the first temple," he said softly, placing a hand on the top of the head and closed his eyes, unaware of the shock that had taken place across her face.

"What...happened to your father?" She hadn't uttered a word, which he was grateful for because he despised interruptions. This question he'd dreaded the most. After all, he never knew his father besides what Anne had told him.

"He thought that by studying the first statue and then seeking out the next, he would atone for what had happened, that his friendship had not been murdered for nothing, but my mother had equally been shaken up that she locked every ounce of the research they once shared after he was found at the study desk, having drunk himself to death. 'That statue,' she told me later, 'did this to our family.' So, as you see, Kim Possible..." He looked at her long and hard, holding her tear-stained face to his. "...I must finish what my parents started. The sacrifices made have to be worth something. My mother always told me I was destined for greatness, to be better than my father tried to do."

~o~

She and Ron lay beneath the stars because she really needed fresh air instead of being stifled in a tent. Not only that, the memory of the horrors of the story that Monty told her about his parents and the first jade monkey weighed on her mind and heart that sleeping before the fire was difficult.

To think that his life's pursuits had been based upon a family curse, his father and a childhood best friend turning against each other over a rare, old piece of rock was horrifying; to think that Ron and Monty's differences nearly did the same to their friendship! She tried not to cry as she turned her face into the heating flames that dried any stray tears peeking from the corners. His mother had gotten pregnant, but her husband drank himself to death in his grief and guilt as well as his obsessive search for the rest of the monkey statues, leaving her alone and withdrawn, locking away everything they had just to think about their only son. She lost everything she loved, sacrificed what she had left for the one gift she had left...and now her son was bearing that weight.

Her mind was whirring and clicking with ideas as to Monty's real motives for finishing the search for the last of the four monkeys, tying in with this story as well as the old myth...

As it turned out, Ron had a difficult time sleeping. But it was his words that got her attention. "KP...there's a ninja at camp."

Alert, she bolted up. A - ninja?! She spotted the figure right away, black and hooded, and in front of Monty and Bates' tent, but that was not the main attraction.

He had the monkey statue in his arms!

"Hold it!" she shouted, leaping to her feet and throwing the first kick at the man, who dodged it but had to set down the idol as to not risk it getting scratched in any way. Which gave her an advantage. "Ron, catch!" She snatched it in both hands and tossed it in the air to her friend who was still in his sleeping bag, cowering in fright as he watched her take care of herself.

Kim thought she could take on the ninja - but another voice caused them to freeze.

"What's all this, then?"

Unfortunately, her distraction at Monty's appearance from his tent caused the ninja to lash out at her and throw her into the unoccupied tent, the poles coming down and bringing the fabric, and she was tangled within moments. Great, now she left Monty and Ron unable to fend off this guy, whoever he was!

Kim heard the commotion, telling her that the ninja was being dueled, but it wasn't Ron. "You are making a grave mistake coming here!" Monty shouted to the ninja whom he was clearly fighting. For a moment, she wondered how he could handle the guy, before she remembered that he'd said he was a master of Monkey Kung Fu, and could hear it all...

But then she heard a grunt and a toss to the ground, but she wasn't sure who it was. Before she heard Ron's screams as well as a hiss to follow. By the time Kim got herself free from the fallen tent, Bates had finally come out of the tent with the lantern in hand. Ron was still wrapped up in his bag, and Monty was just getting up, glaring savagely at the fading mist of smoke. The ninja had used smoke pellets to distract them all and get away.

And he took the statue with him.

"Oh, rot!" Monty spat, clenching his fists before himself and still scowling ahead of them all. "If only he hadn't been better than all of us. Word of our discovery must have gotten out!"

Kim had to agree with him, but just as she slammed a fist into her palm, she found herself looking down at his hands...and her heart dropped just as it burst with shock. Ron saw, too, and he screamed so loud that it caused the birds and little critters in the trees to scatter. "That is _sick and wrong!"_

Monty turned his angry gaze on them both, before it changed immediately to baffle, and ultimately dismay, when he noticed what Ron was talking about. Even Rufus' shriek from his master's pocket didn't help. At some point, the ninja must have removed Monty's gloves without his knowledge, revealing the biggest surprise that struck Kim's core, and it was nothing she would EVER have expected. This had to be what he'd hinted that he couldn't trust her with before.

His fingers appeared to be human if not for the fact they were longer than average, but the backs of his palms were covered thickly with black hair. His hands were that of a _monkey._

 **Duh duh DUH! THE BIG REVEAL. :O Let's see how Kim and Ron take this revelation, and how Monty reacts now that they know his secret.**

 **I figured it was time to get to Kim brainstorming her next book and new leading lady; the appearance of her first, Kathryn, was based off of her voice actress, Christy Carlson Romano. :) In a way, the character is really her. In addition to the name of her new character, Iris, she pays a homage to my friend Vytina's OC Iris DeLaine, one of my favorites of hers (she also writes for Kim/Monty).**

 **The slight redoing of the fourth and final temple had to take careful precision as Monty does go in with her like last time. After all, this IS a retelling of the original events.**


	15. What Is on the Inside

**So, now Monty's secret is exposed, which had been built up in suspension all this time (even though we ALL knew what it was from the start), but now comes how he deals with Kim and Ron's knowledge, and let's see how it goes.**

Chapter Fifteen

What Is on the Inside

 _"I must finish what my parents started. The sacrifices made have to be worth something. My mother always told me I was destined for greatness, to be better than my father tried to do."_

He closed his eyes, but it did not break the spell the statue held over him. Sleep would not come to him, so he sat cross-legged before it and tried to meditate - but that did not help either. Why was tonight suddenly changing for him? At long last, they had this last statue, the weight lifting from his soul after telling her his story, but there was still a lingering rock on the land that was his heart. He was grateful for her, for her help and filling his lonely life - except the one thing. He stared at his gloved hands and burned inside...

"My lord, is everything all right?" Bates had asked as he came to join him in the tent, noting his master's expression. "Oh, forgive me for asking. Is it...Miss Possible again?"

Monty's answer was monotoned. "Yes and no." He glanced up at his valet numbly. "She knows everything...except this." He held both his hands up before dropping them like dead weight into his lap. Bates exhaled and slumped his shoulders as he knelt before him. The man who had been with him all this time was here for him now.

Bates' attention was now on the statue, but the reaction was clear in his eyes: he thought it a piece of grotesquery. Fiske had seen it in the past three, and now was no exception. But the older man's reaction was touching but unnecessary. As was his attempts to console. "Milord, I know you as well as I knew your parents. You do not think you are worthy, but she will not think any less of you if you tell her..."

"Tell her what?" Monty snapped, keeping his voice as low as possible. "That I was born like this?" He held up both his hands and uncrossed his legs so his feet, also still covered, were extended for the eye. "No, you know I cannot! You recall how difficult it was for me to keep this secret - this so-called burden - and my mother had also feared what would happen."

"She had her reasons, but I know that if you tell Miss Possible the truth, she'll understand surely," Bates insisted.

How could his mind and heart believe so oppositely and create such conflict? "Maybe." He sighed. "But how do we know she won't react differently if I did confess?"

The man's hand found its way to his shoulder. "You have to make the choice yourself. It's up to you, sir, and I hope you make the right one possible."

Monty swallowed, the bob in his throat thicker than the external muscles. Yes, this was his choice to make - but it was far more difficult than any other choice he made when it came to finding the greatest long-lost relic across the globe, facing the troubles of its government and so forth. This was by far more personal.

However, by the time he forced himself to lay down in his bag, back to Bates, he found himself staring more at the monkey. The jade eyes continued to glow, but the sensation that came over him lulled him into the long-awaited slumber he craved...only to be awakened to sharp awareness some time later.

His ears perked at the sound of the commotion. "Hold it! Ron, catch!"

Kimberly was in trouble - and what was more: the idol was no longer in the tent!

"Milord?" Bates whispered to him as he saw what his master was looking at, but there was no time for speculation. Kim was currently fighting the thief, and she needed his help. The blasted fool crept in without alerting him, and they would pay for this.

Monty shouted at the ninja to leave her, and the figure turned to see him; the eyes flashed at the sight of him, but his other opponent was there. His hand threw out at Kimberly, sending her backwards into the tent he had helped set up for her and Ron before they declined. He'd frowned then, assuming they both preferred nature instead of protection from wildlife. She ended up ensnared in the fallen construction, therefore enabling the escape for the ninja and the monkey in his arms - but now it was in Ronald's, the poor fool still wrapped up in his sleeping bag.

Knowing who this was, his old friend had warned him for the last time, and now he had found out that Monty had defied him and pursued. He knew what he was doing because this caused the deaths of both of their fathers - but maybe this could also rectify that tragedy, be used for greater things. Why didn't HE see this?

He let loose a cry that had begun while they were both younger men and in the prestigious school, having been sparring partners and took turns besting before Master Sensei drilled it into them both that a ninja never goes easy on his opponent - not even when they are near and dear friends. He swept beneath the other, throwing a kick out which the opposite dodged.

"You are making a grave mistake coming here!"

His body rushed with such anger and frustration, which had been claimed as dangerous in a fighter, but they were his allies because that was precisely what he was feeling. His style was precisely what he had trained Chippy and Mila to do, his fingers flattened together to form the "axe hand" and striking his rival, no matter knowing the man all his life, but he had no intentions to kill, and neither did the other.

But apparently, the ninja was not leaving until he got what he came for. And as for Monty Fiske, he wasn't letting his prize go without a fight.

Kimberly was still fighting her way through her trappings when he found himself ensnared and his back against the other's chest, powerful arms trapping him, and the voice in his ear.

"I warned you about this."

He didn't know what happened next when his vision became dazed, and his head erupted in the back with pain. He was stunned temporarily and mentally cursed the distraction so the "thief" got away with what he came all this way for...and had lost.

By the time he managed to pull through, smoke was before his eyes, and Ronald had ceased his shrieks of startle. But Monty no longer cared to see everyone around him, only focused on the distant jungle where the statue had been taken from them. All of them had been bested by one, including _he_ \- he, the Master of _Tai Shing Pek Kwar!_

He could hardly keep himself together. "Oh, rot! If only he hadn't been better than all of us. Word of our discovery must have gotten out!" he ranted, before he was snapped back to attention at the sound of Kim's gasp, and followed by the worst words that he ever heard Ron say to him, but just as harmful as it had been the first day they met.

"That is _sick and wrong!"_

Bates was moaning in utter despair when he saw what Monty did: his bare hands were revealed, to HER eyes and her monkey-phobic friend. What he had kept hidden for so long...and he saw it in their eyes: pity and shock. Just the two emotions that he spited and did not deserve. His stomach and heart rolled around as one, the nausea in his system worse than the pain he suffered all his life, when he lost control of his emotions and clenched his fists.

His _monkey_ hands.

This was what his mother said was a gift and a burden. What was part of who and what he was, and for his entire life that while he owned it, the price to pay was to hide his borne mutation which had been the result of the first icon she grabbed while her husband fought his old friend for the sake of archaeological discovery. What had driven his father to drink himself to death in trying to find the other three to follow, wallowed in guilt, but ensured her son that he would never fall. That he would be the one to rise and be the great one because of what she and his father had done.

An opportunity that had been deprived of him now that the fourth and final statue had been stolen.

"Monty." His eyes snapped back to her when she spoke, but he didn't want to hear it now that she knew. He could not take any chances and plead with her. A man never pleaded with another to understand.

"This is what I could never reveal to another for fear of repulsion, Kimberly. I had wanted trust established...but look at me." He allowed his attention to shift to the still-mortified Ron. "I am just what your monkey-phobic friend said I was: a freak of nature." He clenched his jaw. "And what else did you say I was, Ronald, hm?"

"B-b-bad road?" the lad stammered.

"Yes." His lips pulled back into a snarl, feeling his body wrack. "You both could never understand any of this. I was born this way."

Ron sputtered but said nothing, instead shrank further into his sleeping bag. What could they say? Nothing, because no matter how hard they would try, they would never understand this. He snapped back to Kimberly who took a step forward, having summoned the courage once she got over her initial shock. "Monty -" She reached for him, but he pulled back.

"Don't touch me." He turned his back to her, to her friend and to his loyal valet who tried to get him to reason, but he wanted nothing to do with any of them. He stalked away from them, away from the camp site and jumped into the wilderness, wanting to be alone and swim in his pool of despair.

~o~

The statue was gone, but the loss and her failure wasn't the worst of it. Kim found herself collapsing to her knees when her heart melted with an immense pain as though the temperature rose and melted it all until it shriveled like a dead flower.

Any anger or hatred she would have had towards Monty never arose within her, because she understood why he hid what she'd seen: his hands were those of a monkey, but how did he get them? Was his _born_ like that, or was it genetic modification? He loved monkeys that much that it had been with him at birth or maybe took time to grow in life that he decided he wanted to partly BE like them...?

 _I was born like this..._

She always knew he couldn't be perfect completely as he appeared on the outside, but this was not what she expected - but that did not make her care about him any less. At least he wasn't a synthodrone...but now he had run away because she found out. That hurt even worse than him not trusting her in the beginning. Any sympathy she was beginning to feel moreso than ever was being crushed by his distance.

"He - he has monkey hands," Ron was saying, dropping to the ground beside her, keeping his bag around himself. "What does he also have? The FEET, too?"

Bates cleared his throat and knelt down before them both, somber. "Mr. Stoppable, please, calm down and I will explain," he said harshly before softening. "Yes, but it wasn't his fault. His mother suffered when she first touched the first monkey, she felt something...strange, when she and her husband returned from Japan, when everything fell apart. Her husband died and left it to her, therefore becoming the cursed heirloom that would lead him to the path he is taking now."

"And that is?" Kim questioned, hoping this discussion would distract her from the painful present for the time being. Beneath her shirt, the heart locket was still there, but now it burned like dried ice against her skin.

"Well, ahem..." The valet struggled, reaching behind his head to scratch it as he searched the right words. "Lady Anne Fiske was affected, for lack of a scientific explanation, for I never understood it myself, and neither did the doctors during examination. I thought the old myth was crazy...but then the child was born, altered in some ways as you've witnessed." He raised an eyebrow when Ron sputtered.

"Having monkey hands and feet is sick and wrong."

"It was not foreseen," Bates returned. "You were not there when the poor woman had complications during her pregnancy before and after her husband's death: hallucinations, cravings for bananas and other fruits. When her son was born, the doctor and nurses who delivered at the local hospital recoiled at the abnormal sight of the child's hands and feet, when these things are never predicted to come. The fact there was no medical term in existence as no test results matched up did not make this easier for Anne. She became convinced from then on that if she exposed her son's condition to others, he would be called an abnormity. I helped her protect him in every step until he was of age and could pick up the torch. He was innocent in the beginning, but now he has grown to accept who and what he is. He has also become a man of his own in that he is willing to make his own destiny."

So, not only was he born the way he looked, and not only was this pushed onto him, but Monty had the natural seed of adventure that compelled him to find the other three statues. In other words: he was meant to successfully find the other three jade monkeys, for the first his parents found wanted to be reunited with its brothers and give the power to the one destined...

Kim stopped herself there. But, wait, so it _wasn't_ just a story? If you believed in something like this, then it might manifest, but she was logical in that ancient magic couldn't exist - or maybe she was in over her head more than she realized.

No, Monty Fiske could not be like the villains she faced off and locked up in her life; no, he was just lost and needed to be on track. Clearly Bates and his mother did everything they could, so that left Kim Possible. But his darkest secrets had been revealed, his vulnerabilities taken over his pride, and now she didn't know what to do.

She barely slept the rest of the night, and by morning, it was worse. Monty never returned until at some point late, but she didn't have it in her to turn and talk to him. He had been avoiding her the entire morning as they waited for his family charter to be ready for take-off. It was grating her more than hurting her now, but how could she confront him without embarrassing him in front of Ron and Bates?

She didn't need too much rationalizing to come to her conclusion that she reached during the night. He was not a freak; he was still human and should not let it eat him away.

As for the Mystical Monkey Power...he didn't need some great power, because with such power came great responsibility, and who was anyone to _choose_ it? If he wasn't careful, he was definitely down the mentally insane path.

Belief in magic would earn a place in the loony bin, and if that happened, Lord Monty Fiske would be seen as a madman instead of the great one she still believed he was. She was going to help him if that was the last thing. And just as they were all still waiting to embark, the air was still strained only to be broken by the sound of the Kimmunicator. "Wade?"

 _"I don't think you or Lord Fiske will like this news, but we got word from the British Museum."_ He swallowed after a downing of his Ramen. _"The three jade monkey statues had been stolen, but security cameras had been disabled somehow so the perpetrators were not caught on footage."_

~o~

"WHAT?! THE OTHER THREE ARE GONE?!"

His explosion took even himself off-guard as it did the other three around him, but Wade was unaffected as he was surprised. _"I take it the one you guys retrieved was also taken?"_ he asked cautiously that it forced him to calm down. Monty inhaled through his nose before letting it out slowly.

"Yes, a ninja snatched it. Kimberly and I tried to stop him, but we failed."

 _"A ninja,"_ the youth repeated with a nervous, uncertain look. _"That's something to be looked into. I'll do a global scan and see what I can find more on the legend of the monkey idols."_

The lump in his throat was back. "That is not necessary, Mr. Lode," Fiske said brusquely. "This is my issue to deal with, and mine alone. Some of us have done our parts." For the first time, he found himself looking at Kim, but she refused to make eye contact with him. The pain was clear in her face; he was the cause of it, because he felt enough agony in his lifetime caused by others and from being sheltered, burdened and driven by one goal. He intended to go to Japan alone as he knew his old friend had taken the magic monkey and its companions to a safer place. He'd had help retrieve the other three at the museum.

He knew he could not trouble Kimberly any longer with this.

~o~

Tara was with them at Bueno Nacho, and so was Monique, but having those close to her five days after returning to Middleton did not ease what never left her. Ron had been babbling about the "monkey hands and feet", making it worse, and she had to lose her temper and scream at him as soon as they set foot on their hometown following the freefall - which only made her stomach flip-flop with agony instead of excitement.

"Ron, would you just shut it?!"

She could not remember the last time she lost it like this, but with Eric, she never exploded out of proportion the way she did. And he'd drawn back by three steps, both hands in the air. "Whoa, KP, I never expected to hear that. But now that we know why Lord Monty Fiske never lived a normal life like us, why he was so secretive about everything -"

"And he had good reasons! He's not a freak of nature, Ron! He's just...different. He has no reason to be blamed," she insisted.

"Well, then, how would you explain his insane quest to gain this Mystical Monkey Power? Ugh, how much monkey can I take any longer?!" He tugged his hair in frustration.

Kim exhaled sharply and said nothing as they made their ways home that day. She was not an expert on magic and occult, but if Monty wanted to be the...Ultimate Monkey Master, then he needed some help. Not from a professional, but from her and her connections. He'd had enough of being sheltered, had enough hiding his identity - and that ninja who stole the jade monkey and the others, now that she knew the guy had help as soon as the man who retrieved them was away, this could not be left alone. She wasn't backing out now.

Kim Possible _never_ backed away from anything, not even when someone else told her to.

Now she was here, as previously stated, at Bueno Nacho with her closest individuals. They all noticed how down she was and tried to help, but she had to brush it all off, because what could they REALLY do physically for her broken heart, since it was clear what it was? She hadn't felt this since...

"Earth to Kim, this is Monkey Boy we are talking!" Monique exclaimed in dismay. "He is purposefully shutting you away, and we know why! He doesn't want to hurt you."

She gritted her teeth at the truth settling on her. Why didn't she think of it that way before? "That's bull!" she burst. "He knows perfectly well I'm not a fragile little girl who is afraid of him just because of what he looks like on the outside - or better, why he really needed my help." Though really, he only agreed because Dr. Reeves suggested her, and he must have seen her as an extra hand that he thought was necessary. She wasn't going too far to jump into the conclusion that he never cared about her; why else would he have shown genuine interest in her, send her his mother's locket with his picture, or even agreed to spend time with her family on Thanksgiving. He was with her through thick and thin in both monkey temples - in fact, thick and thin through almost anything.

And didn't he mean what he said when he wanted to be the man that Eric wasn't? That last one was almost unbearable.

"Yeah, he used you!" Ron pointed out, getting all sharp eyes on him. He swallowed. Rufus had been in the middle of his naco when he mimicked his master. "What?"

"He didn't use me," Kim snapped. "He wasn't ready to completely confide in me. There's a difference. This is nothing like it was with Eric."

There was a long slurp of Sprite from her plastic cup, following by a broken exhale. "This is crazy," Tara said in dismay, bowing her head. "I hate how love can be so hard at times." She lifted her gaze then to meet with Ron, who cracked an awkward grin. They had stupid moments, but forgave each other on the spot.

Ron was just getting up for another order of nacos. "Yeah, remember that time I found you crying behind the bleachers after you and Mankey split?" he reminded her, leaning down to kiss her forehead before Rufus leaped into his master's pocket to join, but then he changed his mind when he saw Tara's face fall and decided to stay with her. To be reminded about the first real guy in high school she had an actual crush on in her life, had a brief relationship with before they broke up after a few months, made Kim lower her eyes to the table. She didn't think about it much anymore, but it had been only beginner's luck on her part, and there had been things about Josh and herself that they couldn't tolerate with each other after all. It had been terrible that Tara had to suffer that as well. She was leaning back then as she recalled the fond memory of Ron Stoppable, whom she had a crush on from the start, came to her rescue.

"Huh...Ron finding me there after Josh left me was embarrassing, yep," Tara answered, "and I never thought that day would come. He was there for me from then on." She looked down at Rufus and smiled when the little guy jumped on her and nuzzled, making her laugh. "I didn't think he'd tell me he loved me when we ended up going to U together, remember, Kim?" Her blues twinkled. "We never know real love when it stares us right in the face."

It was then and there that the spot had been hit. Did Tara just say...?

"Tara..." Kim said slowly. "...did you -?"

The blonde grinned. "I said love, Kim."

"Yeah, she did, girl!" Monique piped up. "I tried telling you all this time. Monty boy has more for you than he wants to give himself. He's doing this on purpose because he wants you as much as you want him. But he's too proud to admit it." Unspoken but obvious was that he was suffering as much as she was, yet he didn't feel like he deserved her because of his oddities. Which was enough to state that he was acting like an insecure child, and all it took was some tough parenting love to regain that confidence.

Something inside her melted and caused her to slump forward, almost into her food before Rufus had leaped forward and saved its life from her out-of-body experience. That feeling from when she was younger was back, only it wasn't fleeting, and it wasn't foolishly blind like with Eric. And she wasn't fantasizing like every time she looked at HIS face on the screen of her Kimmunicator. He was in her life, even if he was an ocean away from her and withering into himself because of all four jade monkeys taken away, and the fact his birth secret had been exposed...

...but she would show him he deserved her, if it took every breath and every bone in her body. That was what love was: willing to do anything for the other.

She jerked back up to her full sitting height with that in mind. "Uh, Kim?" Ron exclaimed, stunned that she was even taking to heart what the other ladies were saying about a man who not only loved what he hated, but was also genetically a _part_ of what he hated. "You're not seriously -!" She cut him off, no longer caring.

"Well, that's a thanks to you all," Kim declared, standing up and leaving them be. "Now I know what I have to do!"

~o~

Lord Fiske had not been like this since his mother passed on. He'd either be in the dojo with the monkeys or in his study mindlessly pouring through his texts. There was seldom a time Bates saw him smiling in the past week, and he sighed heavily as he observed his master from the doorway. He had been down this road before and had never thought it would come again.

Fiske had not once mentioned Miss Possible, nor did he speak about the lost four statues after an entire life's hunt. At least, not since the return to the museum to give Joanne Reeves the report, as well as learning from her that the first three statues were also gone. He had difficulty keeping his temper under control, but the woman fared no better.

"Monty, I am just as shocked as you are," she'd said, taking off her glasses and rubbing her eyes. "How could this have happened, I keep asking myself."

Monty's hands clenched into fists. "Believe me, Miss Possible and I tried to stop him. Everything we worked for had been wasted!" His voice rose high to become an angered ape's instead of a man that it made Reeves raise both brows.

"We ought to launch an investigation to reclaim those icons, my friend - but for now we have legal matters to settle, not rush into it like grave robbers. These ninjas you speak of could have had their reasons for stealing them." Even that did not improve the nobleman's mood. Bates had the slightest idea that the combination of the stolen statues as well as Kim Possible was the fatal deterioration of his depression. There was one thing he could do whether his master asked for it or not.

He'd witnessed, in addition, that whenever she tried calling him on his Montunicator - the name still made him chuckle - and he would brusquely claim he was busy before cutting her off. It was hard to imagine how the young woman was feeling. Now Fiske happened to not wear his device on his wrist today, shutting away altogether, so Bates was given the opportunity to contact Kim Possible at the very chance he was given.

 **So, Monty Fiske was BORN with his mutated hands and feet. The idea was spawned from "A Monkey in Middleton" by xXxAnimeBellxXx, who gave the permission to use it, of course. :) I thought it was very refreshing, but unlike in here, there was no explanation as to what caused the borne mutation - and certainly no DNAmy involved. Now he's purposefully distancing from Kim because he feel he doesn't deserve her because of his abnormalities - but she's too strong to be shoved aside like this. ;D**


	16. Opening Hearts

Chapter Sixteen

Opening Hearts

Bates surprised her when he contacted her Thursday morning, an hour before her next class, and she was outside the library with Tara, Monique and a few of the other cheerleaders, and she'd excused herself to hear what he had to say, knowing it regarded his master. "How is he?" It was a stupid question, but it was easier to ask than to be casual and pretend nothing was really going on.

He sighed. _"Terrible. I have tried everything to make him come around, but nothing I do or say can seem to get through to him. I pray you will be able to."_

"Yes and thank you, but why me? I know you've known him much longer than me, but -" He interrupted her, but it wasn't a rude form.

 _"Yes, I understand why you ask, dear, but I have seen it from the beginning. You have sparked more than just his interest. I have never seen my lord taken a shine to such a person before and letting her know some of his secrets; I had hoped he would have had the chance to tell the rest, but things were forced out of hand."_ He went on to tell her that the last time his master distanced himself for some time was when Anne Fiske died, but this time was threatening to blow out of proportion because this was a real woman who was beneath him in status but otherwise an equal partner - and his chance to live.

Kim looked over her shoulder to see her friends conversing, but the look from Monique was asking her if she was coming back. She nodded hastily before returning. "I figured that much, but do you really think I can get through to him?" She saw the valet look to the side and noted the expression he wore, forlorn and helpless.

 _"I clearly hope so, my dear, otherwise I really have no clue what else can be done for his sake."_

"And what about his hunt for the...Mystical Monkey Power that his parents left on him?"

The worry was clear in the man's eyes. _"You have heard the legend. He has his...crazy -"_ He really struggled around the word, not that she blamed him, because this was his master he was talking about. _"- theories, and I never dared to judge Lady Anne's mind, God bless her soul, but I was willing to assume he would never rest until he finds the statues again,"_ he said warily.

Kim wet her lips out of habit, feeling the dry cracks. "And then what?" She had no clue what would come as he never told her more than what was said, and even with Wade's help, there was very limited finding on the subject, mostly because its secrets were kept hidden for good reasons.

 _"That I'm not entirely sure of, but I hope that he doesn't let this consume him and let it turn into a form of madness. He had been warned, but did not heed."_

"Yes, I completely agree with you on that." So, his mysterious friend must have done that, but did Monty listen? Apparently not. Once again, she hated to imagine what would happen to see such a brilliant mind and noble person like him become twisted and dark by such power.

She let Bates go then, and wasted no time in getting a hold of Wade for a transport. She was going to Monty whether he wanted to see her or not, and that was final. She did not want him going down this path and wind up making a fatal mistake that could potentially make him into a monster.

Britina was kind enough to give her a lift in her jet. In addition, it seemed that everyone her age was getting married - leaving her out, but Monique and Tara were not yet in that zone. The ring around Britina's finger was a vivacious round opal surrounded with diamonds, and if Kim said so, better than Bonnie's pink diamond showstopper. Showstopper was an overstatement for that.

When she finally arrived in London, she was greeted by Bates at the airport, the car ready for her. But the lord himself was nowhere to be found. "He's still in his secret room, my dear," the valet told her grimly. "He hasn't been at the museum in three days, which Dr. Reeves has given him a short leave for."

She gaped at him. Wasn't he going to get in trouble for this? "If only I can get him out of this, like we talked about," she said as she slid into the backseat, mission gear out of the question as this wasn't business. "Nothing's changed?"

"None at all. You will find him worse for wear, and don't expect him in a good mood. I doubt you will like this Lord Fiske." Kim snorted; she wasn't sure she would, either.

Rain began to fall. Being in early December with winter on the rise in a couple weeks, the temperature dropped rapidly. She pulled her coat around herself as she and Bates left the vehicle now in the driveway, making way for the door around. The air was cozy if dismal as this weather. She let her coat drop then, shaking her hair free, warmth washing over her skin. Her gray tee hugged her form and absorbed the chill that her body once endured. This castle had no heaters, so the old-fashioned fires were in the question just before she arrived. "I've prepared the tea, but Lord Fiske has no idea you were coming."

She looked at him in surprise. "You never told him," she repeated.

"He would have insisted no - or should I say, force me to not," Bates answered with a bow of the head. "But this was for his own good."

"What is she doing here?!"

The sudden bark from ahead made them both freeze. Kim was used to this kind of talk, but this was the first time coming from _him._ It happened so fast she never thought she'd run into him so soon...and the sight of him made her blood run cold. Bates was right, he DID look worse for wear. He was in his smoking jacket; his hair looked like it hadn't been treated in days, dark circles present under his eyes, and stubble was forming. He really became a bum worse than her father used to be once in awhile.

"Monty Fiske," Kim said frigidly, "is this a way to talk to me after harshly sending me away after everything we've been through?"

"Well, I wasn't expecting company, though I didn't think my valet would go behind my back to bring you!"

He shot a glare at the valet who stood his ground. "I did it because I feel that Miss Possible should come, my lord," Bates said hotly. Monty, however, wasn't fazed. He sniffed distastefully and alternated his glower between them.

"Yes, well, now that she's here, perhaps it's best she goes. I have no time to play host. I'm busy and have to get back to my work." He turned his back to them, but she wasn't going to let him get away with this. Huffing, Kim stalked after him and didn't stop until she blocked his path.

"Work, Monty? You look exhausted, and honestly, you seem on the verge of collapsing." She took him by his arm and started to lead him towards a chair against the wall. "Please take a seat and relax."

"Relax?!" he barked, jerking his arm from her. "How can I possible relax when those statues are in the midst of others, and I have to find them before it's too late!"

"I seriously doubt they will go anywhere!" she returned. "Wasn't it obvious that in the story, the original warriors separated them because they didn't want anyone else to get the power? Maybe there's a chance the statues won't be restored to their original places because the tombs were already compromised. So, you have nothing to worry about. I'm here to help you with that now." She looked into his eyes, hoping to see a flicker of the old light that had been gone since that night in Cambodia, but the sharp icy blue only darkened with frenzy.

His laugh was harsh and without humor. "Oh, really?"

"That's right! In fact, I'm here to help you whether you asked for it or not."

Monty bared his teeth and turned his back to her again, but how dare he?! "Lord Fiske, stop turning away from me!" she shouted. "And stop cutting me off on the Kimmunicator when I need you as much! If you need me -"

"Stop telling me what I need!" He rounded on her. "I don't need OR want anyone, Kim Possible! Why do you bother to care about me, eh?! _Look at these!_ " He pulled both his hands out of his pockets to show their borne mutilated simianism. "I'm hardly even human!"

That was it. Enough was enough. "Monty, that is not true!" She harshly took both hands into hers, holding them and feeling rushed with warmth as her skin made contact with his for the first time. In contrast to unmarked smoothness that was hers, his palms were rough and calloused. "You're still human no matter this part. This is also why I came here." He tried to pull his hands away, but she wouldn't let him go - and then what he did next was what she should have expected because of learning his mastery of Monkey Kung Fu.

He pulled her close to him and spun her around, attempting to throw her off of him, but she held onto him, not even anticipating a little tango that was born out of the tension that now existed between them. From the corner of her eye, she saw Bates worriedly slip out of the area, lingering outside the doorway just in case backup was needed. Whether it was for her or his master, she did not know. This did not scare her, however, but amplified her determination, and showed her that he, in his own way, was demonstrating his inner conflicts. Body contact happened to be one of them.

In response, she wrapped her arms around his neck and did the one thing she always wanted to do, waited so long for that she never got to do with Josh or Eric.

She found herself dipped low, still in Monty's arms, and kissed him full on the mouth.

~o~

Defiance set him off as much as repulsion and rejection, so how could Bates do this to him?! He went behind his master's back and betrayed him to her! He raged mentally and emotionally - before he lost awareness of his actions and soon found his arms and hands manhandling her beyond his gentlemanly control. He shouldn't have done this, but -

Bates' actions had been for his own good, he said, because he'd been the father figure to help him and guide him when he was becoming a young man, and that was why Monty was torn between accepting and continuing what he'd done in the last week.

What he never anticipated was finding her lips over his, in this rough embrace and the valet no longer in their presence. He never imagined such a fine sweetness as hers. They had the flavor of cherries lingering on him, even as she pulled away now, but refused to drop in this embarrassing position. He blinked and looked at her in shock. Just why in the world would she do this? He was still sure she was repulsed by his deformity, and yet she came all this way just to see him; well, _Bates_ convinced her to, but still, she should have known better - she, this fiery, spirited young lady, refused to leave even when he was gripping her against him. She'd responded back and took him on in strength and with a sudden move that he never imagined an opponent doing in his lifetime. She really had no idea of the extent of this situation she was in.

"Why did you do that?" he finally managed, his lips tingling and still tasting her gloss.

"Because I wanted to," she answered simply.

He had to let her go now because the embrace was too much. Too good, and too dangerous in his comfort zone. "You have no idea how deep you've tread these waters, Kimberly. You should not be here in these circumstances."

She put her hands on her hips and threw her hair over one shoulder. "Too bad. That's a bull hell of an excuse to say you don't want to hurt me," she snapped. "Eric hurt me a long time ago, but I was a stupid little girl in those days. They're long past me now."

"And I have never allowed another in because I would be branded, like I had been when I was born," Monty said hotly. "What makes you think you can help me now? This is nothing compared to what I asked of you. I told you in the beginning that I am not the man you thought I was - and now you see why." He held up his hands again before shoving them into his pockets to prevent her from taking hold of them again.

"I'm tired of all of this! I'll go ahead and straight up tell you that I more than care about you, and it's not a crush, either!"

Both of them knew they had feelings for each other, but he never expected to use the word that his mother and Bates always said to him, which he returned to them - but he'd been too fearful to say it to Kim as it was beyond a major step in their relationship and the invisible force binding them. He felt the stinging in each corner of his eyes, fighting them back and failing to do so at the dam breaking within his heart. Blood boiled and roasted his flesh on the inside. "I can't even bear to use the word you are implying," he told her, "because it's a far exceeding field in comparison to the kind my mother showered over me."

Kim took a step forward and stuck her chin up at him. "The mother who protected you all your life and put this weight on your shoulders," she stated, "but what about making you see that you are not some freak being in existence?! If you ask me, that's a terrible way to live as it's terrible to live focused on one thing. I've seen what happens to those who let it turn them into an entirely different person. Bates won't say this, but I will, Monty.

"My father once told me about an old friend of his who dropped out of college. That man was a genius - well, somewhat, and had issues before letting them get the best of him and taking him down the road to becoming a criminal...and he was the one to use Eric to ruin my life. You? You were born with that -" She pointed to his hands still in his pockets. "- and it wasn't your fault, and the fact it was your family legacy you want to regain those monkey statues for whatever purpose, if you just want to make yourself better than the average human being?" She paused there to look away, out the window where rain rolled down and gray loomed on their moment. "I've gotten to know you enough in the last few months, and I'm here now because I don't want you alone anymore like the last ten years."

He closed his eyes and inhaled through his nose. The man she spoke of who had been her father's former friend was obviously none other than this Dr. Drakken fellow who created "Eric"; he'd suffered, too, but he took a dark path. She was telling all of this to him because she believed he was taking a similar path if he continued to drown in himself...and it was then and there that he remembered his mother and Dr. Reeves' wisdom as well as Bates' rebelliousness. They were all trying to help him, and he was consciously shoving them aside like they were insane.

Right now, so was she in front of him. She'd said he didn't deserve to be left to a fate that had an unknown road waiting, unless she could be of help and prevent him from making the biggest mistake of his life. Great men before him had met similar dooms.

"I know this is important to you, and frankly, letting you do this yourself, I feel I'm putting you at risk. Which is why...I'm going to help you recover them."

Monty looked at her in shock, like she'd grown two heads. "Are you mad?" he suddenly barked, just as thunder rolled. "Surely you realize how dangerous this will be; you do not understand the full capacity which I cannot, in my good nature, let you -"

Her hand came up and struck him, not painfully, across the face. Just enough to take him aback at the first time he recalled being hit by a woman. "Again, too bad! Like it or not, you hired me to help you retrieve the statues, which I am to do!"

"You already finished that task, my dear. There's no need to put your service to this!" he exclaimed.

"Well, consider it my 'freebie for you', Monty, as I'm not letting you go by yourself, so take it or leave it!" She stood there, arms crossed over her chest and daring him to say anything. God, this woman was the most infuriating creature he ever had to deal with!

It seemed he wasn't going to get rid of her now. First of all, he did ask for her help, and she wasn't one to be gotten rid of that easily. The last few months had proven that.

Secondly, he knew he was in love with her, as she had made loud and clear today...and this was the last time he was going to fight her off only to later come and regret that decision. With that being the last result, he growled and moved to scoop her up into his arms, attacking her mouth once more, the blood erupting like lava and traveling to other liquid parts and rising to his mouth which was now in contact with hers. Her hands held onto him, her legs coming to wrap around him, and enabled him to carry her out of here so they had more alone time to explore this new part of their relationship as well as to sort out the mess they had gotten into.

~o~

Was this just a dream that would fade anytime soon?

Or was this going to be the permanence she always waited for? Her entire life for?

She had to be the one he waited all his life, she was sure of it. He never came outright sappy about it, but he must have hinted. That was good enough for her - and he was no longer stubborn about her helping him in every form she would give. She wasn't going to let him go, and he would never be able to get rid of her.

He let her go by the time they got into the lounge area. By this time, her cheeks were flushed, her body like an engine on the verge of an overload, and her lips were swollen whilst still tingling. She slumped in the chair before the fire made. It hadn't faded once. She read about this, even wrote it if not disgustingly so, but never FELT it. When you were a teenager and getting off on porn or the sweet novel romance, it was fantasized a hundred and ten percent of the time...but this time the man she'd worshipped all her life was instilling it in her without so much as time and planning.

Kim noted that he was trying to hide what he was feeling, by standing rigidly before the fire and clasping his hands behind his back. She rolled her eyes, scoffing at his pride. Taking another look at his hands, she realized he was still having a hard time letting go of the fact he wasn't even human. Why didn't he believe he was? This part of him was only a small portion, which shouldn't wound anything. Biting her lip, she stood and waltzed behind him, standing close behind and simply watching the dancing flames with him for awhile before making her move, risky as it was.

She let her hand come up and ghost over the rich fabric of the smoking jacket, causing him to stand more rigidly, and stopped when she reached his sash. She looked up at his face, but he didn't stop her. What she had in mind was by far more too close to home than any other method you could use to get to someone, to strike their most sensitive spot - without permanently scarring in a negative form. Undoing the belt, her fingers opened the jacket and revealed - _bare flesh._ She stopped there; he was _naked?!_ This was not what she expected to find. The infuriating blush returned.

He seemed to sense her mild discomfort and turned around, finishing the job himself and showing the most amazing masculine body she had ever seen. Behind him, the fires danced off the lines of his shoulders and arms, but the front was for her eyes only: pectorals, six-pack and flat stomach - but lower she burned hotter than before, traveling below her stomach. He was still wearing his underwear, but the fashion wasn't what she thought she'd see of him, either. It was black, wrapping around him like island males would wear in the wild. She found herself unable to meet his eyes, before a long, flexible finger came up to tilt her chin for her, meeting now gentle blues.

"Do you see anything vile now?"

"No," she whispered back, reaching up to place a hand over his, wrapping her fingers around it, before bringing her other to rest over his bared chest, feeling his heartbeat pick up. "Monkey or man - or both - you are still a beautiful human being inside and out." She might have choked on her own words because this was the first time she actually spoke from the heart, and to see him respond by closing his eyes and sighing. Kim raised her face back to his and kissed him again, this time letting him take her into another embrace. Her hands explored his back, tracing each line and plane, finding pulsing points that drew shudders from him. His own firmly grasped her hips before sliding beneath her tee and palming her warm flesh. His powerful touch drew her closer to him. Breaking the kiss, Kim parted by a few inches to let him explore her beneath her shirt, pausing just when his fingers reached the underbust of her chest. Her breasts tingled. Maybe this wouldn't hurt, she decided, tugging the gray cotton over her head and revealing her matching colored bra and full curves.

His eyes flashed at the sight that had lain beneath from plain sight until now. "You still wear it," he breathed, reaching to thumb the heart in which his face was stored away like a secret treasure.

"I never take it off," Kim answered proudly. "It's too...precious." His irises glittered and gave away exactly how he felt.

Monty's hand got its permission to firmly cup her left, massaging it for a few seconds before stopping. Kim whimpered at the feeling she wasn't sure if she could describe. In high school, no boy got to reach second or even third base with her. His uncertainty at crossing uncharted territory showed his innocence in his maturity at its finest. He wanted to touch and see what she felt like whilst concerned if he really _was_ pleasing her. "There is something I wish to try - with your full consent," he said huskily, looking at her again.

"What is it?"

"I want to kiss your breast, Kimberly."

She blinked in surprise, trying not to laugh. Monty Fiske was refined and articulate, so to blatantly state what he really wanted was a total surprise. Here he was, naked before the fireplace but still wearing his undergarments, and here she was with her shirt off. Outside, the storm was still pouring, relaxing their senses. Her sensitive skin tingled when she nodded, and his skilled fingers pulled the cup down to expose an erect rosy nipple. He wasted no time in leaning down to place a kiss on it before wrapping his lips around it, sucking once experimentally. She sucked in a gasp; he was doing so good her mind didn't know what to think!

But he had to stop. "Kim, I think we should stop. I can't control myself. The last thing I want is to force you into anything."

Disappointment washed over her when he covered her breast again, but she had to say he was right. They were still just getting to know each other, had another serious problem to work, and they wanted to make sure nothing else was going to come between them. She also knew that it was going to take more time to help him overcome his insecurities. Step one was complete. He was pulling his smoking jacket back over his body while she pulled her shirt back on. A sincere smile was planted on those firm, handsome lips she'd kissed three times today - or did she lose track?

"You shouldn't leave so soon when you have flown all this way just for this," he said. "Will you stay the night with me?"

She smiled back. How could she say no to that?


	17. Secrets Told

**Got a little sweet addition I waited so long to get to in the beginning, giving more steam that now exists between the new couple. ;) The chapter is also titled after the album by Woodland, one of my favorite Celtic/New Age groups.**

Chapter Seventeen

Secrets Told

The memory of the taste of her was beyond exceeding his dream that came only twice, but he never took it seriously to actually come to life. It almost happened if he hadn't been the one to stop it. The surroundings were not only inappropriate in which Bates could walk in on them by accident, but it was too soon. His own needs were out of the question; she had to respond freely of her own instead of giving in to his demands.

Taking a look at himself in the mirror, Monty scowled at the bum he'd turned into because of his self-pity. He wasted no time cleaning up and shaving before returning back to Kim the polished man she was used to seeing him as; her emeralds lit up delightfully.

He had Bates prepare her room, last minute as it was, being the same one he'd given her the first time she had been here, only this time she was alone. He was thankful the distance would prevent sneaking into each other's rooms, but by the time night fell after dinner, he made his way for the dojo because he needed to see his furry friends who had been the butt of his depression and he ought to give them his fullest, sincerest apologies.

"I'm so sorry, the both of you," he said when he took them both into his arms as though they were his children. They ooked and tightly wound around him. It was then and there that he realized Kimberly needed to know something else he had hidden from her. "Come with me."

His mind was buzzing with how to present them to her; if Ronald had been here, he would scream and run like a child. He doubted she would respond the same way. Chippy appeared more enthusiastic to meet the guest herself, whilst his mate looked uncertain if they would be accepted. Most species of monkeys were illegal to keep as pets, but they were not just pets.

They were Monty's _family._

Chippy did the honors of waddling on all fours in the direction of the guest room. He gave the air a sniff before reaching up to paw at the door, scratching a little before gently slapping at it, the best a monkey could knock. After a few moments, the obstacle between him and the occupant on the other side opened, and a gasp was heard. "Oh, hi, little guy! What are you doing in here?" She stepped further out, wearing the velvet robe that had once been his mother's; Monty's breath caught when he noted how she pulled it off as well as Anne had.

Confident she'd been wrong to doubt the human, Mila screeched softly and leaped over to join her mate. The sight and distance was enough to finally draw Kim's attention over and spotting him. "Where did you get these little guys?" she asked, laughing when Mila jumped onto her back and playfully pulled at her hair, while Chippy wrapped his arms around her legs.

"Not even three years ago," he replied, joining her and letting the female crawl onto his back piggy-style. "I saved them from a trap in Congo. I myself would have been ensnared if they hadn't rescued me in return. We owed each other our lives. This is Chippy, and this is Mila."

"You guys are like family," she said, and it wasn't a question. The smile she gave him told everything without an elaborate examination.

~o~

"Did it go well?" Ron asked when he came to her after practice three days later when she was back at school. Still in her cheerleader uniform, she gave him a broad grin as the answer, in which he returned a half-one. "So you guys are back on good terms?"

"Better than that," she told him mysteriously.

His eyes bulged. "Y-you mean you guys are...oh, seriously?" he exclaimed. "I thought no personal ties in business!"

"Ron, it's not just business anymore. I helped him get the statues before, and this time I'm on my own will to help him recover them. He thinks they were taken to Japan; it's the only place he knows where a very old tribe lives, beginning the following of _Tai Shing Pek Kwar."_

They were both making way for the locker rooms at this time when he clarified, "The Monkey Kung Fu?"

She nodded, pulling her hair band from around her wrist and tying her hair back. "The one and the same. He was telling me more; it was founded by a warrior who carved the school from the mountain with a sword. Doing it all the hard way." She laughed lightly. "But that's beside the point. He was the original master of the practice, but then it almost fell into the wrong hands that his devoted followers decided to separate the jade monkeys across the globe." To ensure no one else would get the power, but now they were back in the hands of the descendants of the original warriors. There could only be one, and Monty believed he was the one due to his unnatural birth and his parents daring to raid a sacred temple that was beyond their comprehension.

But if it wasn't Monty...then _who?_

"Just to be clear: does he expect to see me again? I still am not allowed back at that spooky castle of his, am I right?" Ron questioned just as he stopped at the door to the football players' showers and lockers. Kim looked down at Rufus who poked his head out of his master's pocket worriedly. She slumped her shoulders.

"You know...I didn't get the chance to ask him. I feel terrible, Ron."

"Hey, KP -" She looked back up to see soft brown eyes meeting a matching smile. "- don't do it because of me. It's between me and him."

Kim returned the smile. "I think you two should work that out next time. We'll take his plane to Japan just when winter break begins." That was a painfully long time to wait for him as well as for them. Monty feared the warriors would separate the statues, or maybe not. They could be on heavy guard due to the compromised burial sites across the globe - and wasn't it where the very first idol was found by his parents?

"He said he has an old friend who is amongst their ranks, but he didn't say the name. Guess we'll find out as soon as we get there." That was the last thing she said before they parted for the day. She needed to get to work at Club Banana with Monique now.

Later, she found herself reading over the note that she'd found in her pocket. It must have been there since the time she was in Fiske Castle, never knowing it was there by the time she left. Now that she got to read it alone in her room, she couldn't suppress a giggle when she recognized Monty's handwriting. He also had gotten a little bolder with his secrets, in the traditional courting manner in which lovers spilled secrets on handwritten notes.

 _Forgive me for speaking in such a manner, but it has been long enough that I cannot keep it in anymore. We are still an ocean away, but it has not stopped how I have begun to feel for you ever since we met and collaborated so many months ago that seem like forever. I may be classified as ungentlemanly now, but I believe it is now or never._

 _I am not one to constantly state undying love, but you will know it, Kimberly. You have sparked me in a manner no woman in existence before yourself has ever done to me. I deeply regret ignoring what my heart was telling me, and that was to welcome you because you affect me more than the sun, the stars, or any God-created element in the universe could ever accomplish. It seemed from the beginning, the red thread of destiny has linked us together at first sight._

 _I cannot keep this in any longer, but before I laid my lips upon yours as well as your breast, I dreamed of you that has always been the same: your glorious body before the fire, every curve and outline for my eyes, teasing me and torturing me. I long to someday soon ravish your flesh with my hands and lips once again, if you let me - but only of your choice instead of for my sake - upon both your breasts, your lips again, every inch of your thighs, and what rests between them, opening for me like the divine lotus in bloom..._

"Oh, God, you charming devil!" She folded the paper back up and held it close to her heart, which was bumping harshly against her sternum. Her cheeks were flushed, her stomach knotting - and yes, she was itching and a little moist below, but not seriously. "You have no shame, do you?"

It was also then and there that she thought to pay him back by returning a written note of her own and placing it out in the mailbox to be mailed the next day overseas.

~o~

"Ahem, milord, I believe this is for you," Bates said, giving him the envelope which was addressed to him. He raised both eyebrows with amusement. Kimberly never wrote him handwritten except once when she gave him the gift strapped to his wrist. Still, he was curious to see...

 _You merciless ape, you just had to tease me like that, didn't you? Setting me off like that; now you get to learn payback is a bitch._

 _I used to think about you in high school in such a way, but it was silly at the time. Still, simply your entire face and your voice - and now your body, which I have seen only once - made me burn in a way I won't put in derogatory words because that's not how it works in a relationship. That stuff is for disgusting pornography, and you're too good for that. But all of that is beside the point and ruining the moment._

He paused there to chuckle in his throat; he could picture her laughing when she wrote this.

 _I'd thought I was looking at Tarzan or maybe David when I saw your body in front of the fireplace, like you said you saw me in your dream, and I'm not sure if I ever will dream of you the way you had - but I was never able to stop thinking about you. Before I go to sleep, I find myself fantasizing our first time when it comes. It feels so good I can't think of a good vocab word. You get a piece of me on the paper as well as the smell of me now..._

There was a shiny smudge of a lip print at the bottom, which happened to be from her gloss, none other. Consciously, he brought it to his mouth and pecked a brief kiss, wishing it was actually her lips he was tasting - and then a fascinating aroma reached his nostrils; flowers, musk and wood powdered his senses and stirred his nerves. The little seductress!

A paw reached to try and take the paper from him, but he held it high to prevent the monkey from grasping. "Mila, this isn't for your eyes!"

~o~

As it turned out, Monty wanted to get this over and done with. On Tuesday in the following week, he'd called her and Ron to tell them it was time for the trip to Japan. But the day before they were supposed to leave, she suffered what was an understatement of a "wardrobe malfunction" that had Camille Leon in the mix, who was apparently doing business with Club Banana now.

"Bleach on black - REALLY?!" she screeched when the shape-shifter had to do this to her getup, from top to bottom. The stains would never come out, and what else happened? Her line had been discontinued!

She had no time to get a new mission look! Tomorrow she was leaving for Japan, and Monty was counting on her help! Could this get any worse?!

"Oh, no fear, girl!" Monique piqued when she and Tara ushered her about to look for a new idea, last minute as it was. "We'll get you covered fast and see what's you..."

So, today was spent getting the essentials, painful as it was. But their views differed, with Tara's argument being that she should carry on what had been her entire life as the "I'm a teen hero" vibe, but Monique insisted that as a woman, she had a mission with her new man and therefore needed the nudge of "I'm a woman and see how sexy I am?" This was going to be a long day, and she might end up with nothing but the battlesuit which she had not worn since Drakken's Lil'Diablos invasion so many years ago...

Going through leather and denim, to painful cargo too cruelly reminding of the past, then cotton sweat sets - and then one more hit the spot.

"GIRL!"

She gawked at herself in the mirror. The shirt was a turtleneck like her old one, but short-sleeved and purple. The pants were tight-fitted and sleek, lined at the sides with purple. This was...this was her. This was perfect! Monty might drop his jaw all the way to the floor when he saw this. "Oh, man, you really outdid yourself," she breathed harshly, turning at every angle to admire herself in the mirror.

"How does it feel?" Tara asked, reaching to pluck at the elastic gray material of the pants, which were tucked into the knee-high leather boots so she wouldn't have to worry about tripping or getting snagged. Kim exhaled and relished the feel of crisp heather on her skin. That was a good enough answer for all three.

"Wow, KP, you are spankin'!" Ron exclaimed when he saw her walk out of Club Banana on the very day that arrived. "Bomb diggety!"

"Spankin'!" Rufus agreed, giving her a thumbs up.

Should she add that the shine in Monty's eyes was even brighter when the three of them, naked mole rat included, met him at the airport. His shoulders rolled back and forth, hands behind his back as ever, with each breath he took in order to keep himself together.

"Kimberly, you look..." She half-expected him to say gorgeous, or beautiful at least, but those words never left his lips. "...quite the vision, if I must say."

She lowered her eyes bashfully. "Why, thank you, my lord." She could see it in his eyes that he was imagining wanting to undress her but would wait until the time was right for them. You must never rush things in the heat of the moment...but she vowed to see how far things would get heated for them. But right now, duty called.

Oh, Ron. "Um, yeah, it looks good on her. I mean, not like your old getup, but I mean, I'm a guy, so I still don't know about clothes or the yada-yada," he babbled, earning a chuckle from his rival.

"Indeed, as am I, but I happen to fancy this new attire of Kimberly's. Now..." He stepped aside for them both to show the landing ramp. "...our mission awaits."

"Right," Ron affirmed as they boarded, "so, where are we going exactly? This ninja school...?"

~o~

"The Yamanouchi School - at the peak of the mountain of its name."

He breathed the name as he never thought he'd truly lay eyes on it again. This very school he attended as a young man, where his father before him had gone, along with his own best friend whose father happened to be the best friend of Thomas Fiske. Until the latter man unwittingly betrayed their honorable friendship and everything they once had.

The beauty was ethereal at its finest; the powdery clouds parted to show the peak of the mountain which began as a triangle and narrowed to the very top which vanished into the skyline. It was midday when they touched into the serene environment. Lush bonsai trees and maple lit the landscape with shades of auburn and emerald; thin silver streams of rivers and waterfalls coursed through nature's breast like the mother's milk. They would travel on foot, but poor Ronald did not take this well when he learned they would touch down at the foot of the mountain and then walk the rest of the way up. This was how it had been for his father and then himself in the old days.

"Aww, really? We can't fly the rest of the way up, Monty chap?"

"No, because Yamanouchi is a very sacred school that values its privacy. The outside world is not ready for such ancient traditions in the modern times."

"Well, if they want it that way," Kim said as she picked up her backpack, "who are we to disrespect?"

Fresh air filled with assorted tranquility washed over their skin and entered their nostrils. Monty exhaled as he let the beauty drown him momentarily, before reality kicked in, and he started on foot with the young pair after him, as well as Chippy and Mila.

When they first boarded, the monkeys made their appearance after take-off, causing Ron to scream at the top of his lungs and shrink behind Kim. "AAAAAAHHH, MONKEYS!" Rufus had made a disgusted noise and leaped onto the small sill of the window the three were at, but Fiske only snorted and beckoned his little companions to come sit with them.

"Do calm down, Ron," he'd chided. "These are my best and cleverest friends, Chippy and Mila. I owed them my life after I saved them in Africa..."

He told them the story with great pride and relish, ignoring the chattering of Ron's teeth at the sight of the two monkeys he never expected to be on the plane. Public flights didn't allow animals - especially monkeys - but this was the Fiske family private aircraft, so of course, the master would permit it. "I've been training them in the art of Monkey Kung Fu," Monty had explained by the end of his tale.

Kim had laughed. "They match up to their master?" Mila had chattered and reached across the table to cup a gloved hand into both paws, but Ron only backed further away until his back completely hit the corner of the space.

"They have gotten better. They look forward to any necessary combat should we come across trouble. You'd be pleased." He'd winked at them both, but Ronald was the only one did not return it.

The journey up the mountain had been good for their bodies, and he did not once see Kimberly break out into an exhausted sweat; he could not stop admiring her in her new getup. She'd told him she'd recently faced a longtime enemy known as Camille Leon - the result of a failed cosmetic experiment - who had ruined her old one she'd had since high school days. Time to move on, it seemed. He found he admired this new one.

They had just crossed the valley and had reached a great waterfall halfway, which sprayed mist into their faces, when Ronald had stopped them. He collapsed to his knees, weary to his fragile bones despite being a skilled football quarterback Kimberly claimed he was. "You can...go on...without me," he rasped, slumping flat on his front. His naked mole rat jumped onto his back and moaned in disbelief. Kim slapped a hand over her eyes. Chippy and Mila screeched and rushed over to slap him awake and pull him to his knees.

"We are almost there, Ronald," Monty said with some agitation, rubbing the back of his neck. "A few more miles up the mountain before -"

"Stand where you are, outsiders!"

He looked up with some surprise when the five of them found themselves surrounded by a group of ten ninjas in black. He would have proudly challenged them to fight if it weren't for five additions against them all - and one stood out the most, the leader who stepped forward. The voice was all too familiar, commanding, and had been so when he visited Fiske Castle that one night without its master's awareness. The monkeys stepped close behind their master but held their fists up; he gestured them to keep back.

"Fancy to see you again, old friend," Monty said casually, but the other was not pleased. Not that he expected. The only answer he got was a displeased twinkle of the eyes as well as a snap of the fingers to bring them all to the monastery beyond the great fall.

There were no words spoken; even if there would have been, the surrounding warriors would have responded icily or wordlessly. Poor Ron was looking around nervously before his childlike fascination overtook common sense. "You know, nice place. Nicely decorated, time-honored as Confucius himself said -" Well, at least he had limited knowledge of the wise old man himself. He was cut off with a sharp glare of one masked ninja.

"Ron," Kim hissed, "I don't think now is a good time to play nice. These guys obviously don't like outsiders."

The leader overheard her and turned his head halfway. "You are correct, Kim Possible."

"So you have heard of her," Monty said wryly.

"Our master foresaw she would come upon our sanctuary someday - and you with her, Lord Fiske."

He kept his eyes glued ahead at the path which now displayed the bridge - and the school beyond the vast chasm that was more land. The Yamanouchi Ninja School, one of the oldest and honored schools in mysterious history. To the Western world, it posed as several secret agencies whilst not remaining too long to be discovered by the prying. Kim gasped with wide eyes at the sight, and Ron exclaimed, "Check it out!"

"Booyah!" Rufus said, baring his teeth in a big smile. The monkeys ooked and applauded at the picturesque image before them all. The leader turned to them all with the glittering eyes of the welcoming host, but Monty snorted, knowing him better.

"The Yamanouchi Monastery awaits...honored guests."

So, first they were treated as outsiders, and now they were _guests?_ The old relic must still be alive, if his old friend here said the man had witnessed in a vision his former pupil and the world-saving heroine herself were coming. Half of Monty Fiske was looking forward to seeing the old man again, but -

When they were all first brought to the gates, they were greeted by the sight of students of teen years in white, either facing each other hand-to-hand or using the practiced weapons ranging from Tessen to shuriken - only warming up means, not lethal - as well as _kunai_ knives and _katana_...all of which took him back to the good old days...

"Montgomery Fiske-san, it has been a long time."

There was the relic himself, who hadn't appeared to have changed much from his long white hair and beard, garbed in a kimono of red trimmed with gold. He clasped his hands in front of himself and bowed his head. "We have awaited your return," he continued, "as well as the arrival of friends." He gave a kindly smile to the others. "I am Sensei, Kim Possible-chan, and Ron Stoppable-san."

"And this is Rufus," she said, motioning to the rodent who waved hi.

"Chippy and Mila," Monty stated when the attention was on the monkeys. "They have enough training in every art I managed to teach them, Master."

"You are all very welcome. If you would follow me." He called attention to all of the students to cease their training and make way for the shrine of meeting. Monty had the slightest idea what this would lead to, given his first day involved a shout-out from a couple of students who called him an outsider despite who his father had been. Outsiders could never be trusted with their most sacred secrets. Let's see if a repeat would occur.

"Yamanouchi is no ordinary school, as you can see," Sensei continued, mostly to Kimberly and Ronald as they were fairly new. "It is a secret training ground for the art of _ninjutsu._ Fiske-san was once a student here, as was his father before him."

"As was I once, and my father before myself," the lead hooded ninja spoke, finally taking it upon himself to remove his mask and reveal his face, earning wide-eyed surprise from the young fighting duo, and showing his British friend a visage he hadn't seen for years.

"Hirotaka," he acknowledged before turning his attention back to Kim, "was my oldest friend whose father was also close to mine."

"Before both died terrible fates that were not honorable," Hirotaka agreed, bowing his head and displaying utter mourn. Another ninja then stood beside him and removed their mask, showing a strikingly beautiful woman with cropped ebony hair held by a red headband. She appeared to be older than Kim and her friend, but younger than both Monty and Hirotaka. Ron's jaw dropped for a moment before Rufus jumped up to close it for his master. Hirotaka gave her a slight smile of genuine affection before introducing her to them. "This is Yori, my betrothed."

"It is an honor to meet you all," she said with both hands clasped before herself. "And to finally meet you, Lord Fiske." She then reached to take one hand into both of hers. He mimicked the gesture by bowing his head once. Then Sensei announced they would all stand before the kneeling students who were wary of the outsiders visiting their secret sanctuary, and Ron's seemingly innocent queries did not make it easier on any of them. It was humiliating, if you asked Monty.

"So, wait, is this a _public_ secret ninja school?"

Master Sensei answered patiently as he accepted a long box of carved mahogany from Yori herself, who had taken it from a young man. "It is known, yes, but we do not let outsiders know everything, Stoppable-san. Our school has a long and honored history, founded in 338 AD by the great warrior, Toshimiru." He raised a free hand to gesture past their heads, to the great statue of the man in samurai armor, gallantly raising a sword over his head towards the sun and surrounding heavens. "He carved this monastery from the mountain using only this sword...the Lotus Blade."

Having been used for centuries by the samurai during feudal times, this appeared to be traditional _katana_ with the straight-edged blade of gleaming silver connected to a rounded lacquered hilt of ebony. The inscription was of pure gold.

"No! Master Sensei, you say too much to these outsiders!"

Monty jerked his head in the direction of the voice. A young man of about seventeen stood up amongst his stunned peers, half who were inclined to agree with him, but the rest were dreading him doing what the master himself snapped for. "Fukushima," the elder said angrily, "your rudeness dishonors us all. Do apologize and not further shame yourself. I warn you."

Fukushima looked dismayed that his own teacher had to side with people they barely knew and trusted, but he relented and stood up to bow before them all. "Honored guests...I must beg your forgiveness." However, when he raised his eyes to meet Monty's, the lord narrowed his eyes as he detected cold hatred in them. He knew Montgomery Fiske was the son of an honored British archaeologist - but Thomas Fiske also betrayed his friend and the rest of the school by raiding the local temple with his pregnant wife which protected the first of the jade monkey icons.

"Dude, please, nothing but love," Ronald said with a hand over his heart.

"Same here," Kim said kindly, repeating the gesture. Now it was Monty's turn, but while he smiled, he knew his eyes mirrored the younger one's. This was going to be interesting.

Master Sensei closed the box that carried the legendary Lotus Blade and handed it to Hirotaka, one of his best students in the younger days that hadn't passed that long ago, and gave his full attention to his guests. "The six of you - the animals included - are welcome to stay and learn the art of the ninja for as long as you may. Any final contact to the outside world must be handled at once as we cannot risk outside danger befalling on our sacred grounds."

 **Since I began the idea that Monty's mysterious friend whose father had been close to Fiske's father, I struggled with it being one of the two known Yamanouchi students of Hirotaka and Fukushima (one of them had to have an emotional impact if they were to be Monty's same-age childhood friend this time around). And what better to do with Yori than to have her engaged to marry him? :) In other fics, she was either Hirotaka's cousin or his girlfriend, maybe sister, but I don't think I heard love yet.**

 **It had been hard to bring in Kim's new mission outfit which happened to have occured similarly in the original ep "Clothes Minded", but this time Camille Leon is involved, since we have no idea where Drakken and Shego are in the present.**

 **Stay tuned for the next chapter. :D**


	18. The Point of No Return

**It had been awhile since I'd seen the 2004 movie "Phantom of the Opera", which has a wonderfully mysterious, sensual and dangerous love story amidst a classic horror (coming in the 1925 silent thriller), and the music is to DIE for. Especially one such which worked its way in here.**

Chapter Eighteen

The Point of No Return

"Wade, we are going to be here for awhile, it seems," Kim told him as she was given a room of her own within the walls of the school. The walls had to be paper-thin; if these ninja were fiercely protective of their sanctum, then it meant taking secretive means to remain in touch with her gadget help. They were not going to remain totally cut off from outside help.

She'd gotten a hold of the school and called in that she and Ron were going to take a week leave but would take online classes, albeit temporarily as that would be. Monty was given a space of his own and was speaking to Dr. Reeves and the museum at the very moment. Something told her that this visit would have more than just coming for what they came for, besides learning the way of the ninja...

 _"So, you have any idea why the master would want to make sure you guys don't gain any outside help - with me being the exception?"_

"Nothing, but then again, they never reveal the good stuff too soon."

 _"Hmm."_ He rubbed his chin in thought. _"You're right. I've checked this place out and have read all known information - the ones we already have, but get this: the founder of the school and the sword he used to carve it wielded Mystical Monkey Power."_

Kim swallowed. So, the founding man, Toshimiru, was the one who was the original master of Monkey Kung Fu?! She knew there was something about this place! Monty had learned the art here, but it was the man whose statue was placed at the shrine who had the total control of a great power over his followers. However, she realized which made her frown, how had this ancient magic first come to being? This stuff was really complicated, but Toshimiru must have had his reasons as these descendants had theirs for retrieving the statues back.

"Monty believes he's destined for this...Mystical Monkey Power," she told Wade, "but I don't know about this. I have yet to speak to Master Sensei, but you suppose he'll dodge my questions if I get too far in?"

Wade shrugged. _"If what you say is true, Kim, then don't expect him to give straight answers. Or maybe he won't completely trust you until he's certain you can prove yourself before the other students."_

Actually, if she saw right, then Sensei actually saw she was trustworthy, Ron included, and he certainly knew Monty was, given he'd taught him and Hirotaka as young boys. And speaking of Hirotaka, something about him made her flush in an intimidating kind of way. He didn't call her a dangerous outsider like that Fukushima character had, but the tension between him and Monty was present. It made her wonder what they were doing at the present.

~o~

"You had to fight me in Cambodia."

"Because you gave me no other choice," Monty replied as he stood before Hirotaka who paced before him before pausing and hooking him with the eyes. Master Sensei as well as Yori stood by in silence, intently watching the two men. "You knew what my purpose was."

"I warned you about this," Hirotaka said coldly. "I warned you that night and long before, but knowing you, you are by far more stubborn than your father was. He didn't heed my father, either, and look what it did not only to him, but to the both of them. My father sacrificed his life to try and save your parents. The power was supposed to be guarded ferociously until only one could be nobler enough to not succumb to temptation. How can you not bypass the Forbidden Fruit that Toshimiru's most dedicated student had bitten into after his death?"

Monty sniffed. "Kirayoshi was not born the way I was," he said vehemently, holding up both his hands, closing the fingers into fists. Toshimiru's topmost right hand and best disciple of the following was clearly stated in the legend as dedicated, per quote, but reckless. He thought he was the master's heir to the mystique, but the thirst was so great that he turned into a far more dangerous man altogether that he had been targeted and killed by a great deal of his fellow warriors. Afterwards, the statues had been separated and taken to unmarked points of the globe which happened to be found beginning with Montgomery Fiske's grandfather, and then his son to follow - and now the third generation which was Monty himself. It was meant to happen.

"He is right, Hirotaka," Sensei stated, finally coming forth and taking one hand into his, examining it like it was a precious relic. "He may have been born into privilege, but he is not greedy, nor will he succumb to the original man. This was placed upon his being since long before his birth; this is his legacy, and a cursed but blessed one. I have foreseen far greater, dangerous events coming."

"Yes, Sensei," Monty said, looking at him with a raised eyebrow, a tad impatient that the old man could not get to the point. "But will you please elaborate what I must prepare for?"

Beady eyes glittered. "You must prove that you are the Chosen One who will wield the Mystical Monkey Power, my former disciple," Sensei responded, letting his hand go. Monty winced at the lingering warmth in his flesh, marking him. "The statues are safely brought together and well-guarded, but it won't be given to you freely, Fiske-san." He gestured then, and Yori came forth.

"I believe in you," she said kindly, soft as a stream in the bamboo forest, "but you are not alone. You may have mastered _Tai Shing Pek Kwar,_ but alone marks you as what Kirayoshi himself could have become due to his blind arrogance. You're an honorable man, but an honorable man does not grasp with his own hands and is not granted anything without challenge. You must accept that we are all trying to ensure you do not get lost down that unknown dangerous road."

~o~

Non-official or not, she and Ron as well as Monty were awakened before dawn - four in the morning, to be exact. The gong startled Ron out of his wits, but Kim was used to being jetlagged after flights between missions and returning home, though this was different. She hurried to slip into a white gi uniform given to her by Yori the day before; the woman was very sweet and generous, convincing her that she and Ron might improve themselves for the greater good in the future to come. Kim felt flustered even though she was used to praises.

When she met with her companions, the monkeys and Rufus joining, Ron's garb was the same as hers - but the same was not said for Monty. His uniform was black, which befitted him far better as he wasn't a student here. He looked so handsome. "The Dragon Course is to begin," he told them as he was leading the way. "It has always been since my time and my father's before me, and so forth. For millennia it was traditional as a course. Sensei will explain to you rather than me."

Everyone assembled outside then and there, just as the sun was beginning to come through the horizon as a thin sliver of orange and gold amidst royal blue, indigo and black. Lanterns were lit around, still, so some light was illuminating the area. Sensei was very pleased when everyone, including his guests, were assembled. Monty took his place as assistant sensei. He displayed the air of command and respect.

"The Dragon Course," Master Sensei intoned with a raised hand. "A ninja must be stealth - be quick and be silent."

And at the single bang of the gong, that was the cue to hide. To show you were capable of hiding and sneaking up on the enemy. This was no game to play, but now was also not the time to fool around. Monty was watching her intently, and now she felt like the old days where she had to please her teacher and get better; she also knew that while she couldn't let him down, she must improve herself as Yori said.

But while she hid with such speed into one of the nearby trees, she saw that Ron had not been as lucky as she. But it hadn't been his fault. He'd landed facedown in a mud puddle, having been tripped by none other than Fukushima. Kim's rage bubbled when she caught the words: "Welcome to Yamanouchi..." His eyes turned upwards, having caught HER with better wit than she thought.

"... _outsiders._ "

Kim had to urge herself to get it together, that this wasn't about pride, and one younger boy was not going to ruin it for them. But if he thought to challenge her, then so not the drama. Sensei had made it clear he was not pleased, didn't he?

She watched as Monty was the one to step forward and help Ron to his feet, then leaned in to whisper something to him, but she couldn't hear what it was. She could only hope that he was encouraging Ron like she mentally was encouraging herself.

Sensei called them all back to attention, praising them all for their good work - but then he called _her_ and Ron over first, quietly, but Fukushima was still watching them. "Stoppable-san, Possible-chan," he said, "he will give you a troubling time."

"Tell me about it!" Ron rubbed the back of his neck.

"But remember what I told you, Ronald," Monty said when he joined them, casting a dark glare over. "Do not let him get to you. He will see that he is winning if you show that you are giving in. My advice is to look at your surroundings rather than one within them."

 _Look at your surroundings..._

Sadly, their troubles did not lessen by the time noonday struck. Bruises and mildly broken bones were sustained when it was lunch - and it was very difficult for Ron the most. This was the part where the students were not given anything easy at lunch break: even now they were required to be challenged to take a grain of rice from the master lunch lady, who appeared to be nearly the same age as Sensei, though she appeared to be more stern to the wizened face.

The other students aced the challenge, getting the delicious grains of rice and sushi - raw fish, which she had a couple times before. But when it came to Ron, he thought it would be easy because he thought he'd seen it all. He strained when the far more experienced elder dodged his attempts - but Rufus had jumped onto the plate and devoured everything that was there, drawing heavy sighs from his master as well as the elderly lady and the other students behind, Kim included. He'd actually been faring better than Ron.

Another tray was brought out, beginning with her turn now. But when it came to Kim to begin her share of obtaining a grain for herself since she saw this as no big, she never expected to be blocked. "Excuse me, where I'm from, cutting in is called rude!" Then the person turned, revealing himself to be none other than a cocky-looking Fukushima.

"As coming into our sacred ground when you have no business, Kim Possible," he sneered. "You think you can do the impossible, completing missions as Sensei has seen and heard, but you are nothing like those worthy within this school. You are better off lying on your back where you truly belong, like your friend the other outsider."

"FUKUSHIMA!"

All heads turned at the bark that had not belonged to the master himself, but none other than the guest instructor who was Lord Monty Fiske, his savage but collected attention on the student who gave them all trouble from the moment they arrived. Fukushima returned the glower, giving Kim the view of the back of his head which she longed to smash with her bare hands. Monty looked like he was tempted to do the same, but instead he settled on the bigger man method.

"Perhaps your master will settle on the proper punishment for you."

~o~

This was the second time he defended Kimberly's honor, but this time had gone too far because this was by no means merely petty as dealing with Bonnie Rockwaller. Fukushima was a threat, but dangerous? He was not going to take chances.

He was speaking in private with Master Sensei at the end of the day when the sun was setting. The old man exhaled and bowed his head. "Fukushima is a special case, Monty my boy. He means well, but he is fiercely protective of our way of life by means far more complex than you or another would think. It's best I tell you this now because it is necessary."

"And that is?" He raised an eyebrow, suspecting that this secret could help him and the others during their stay, but for what purpose?

He never expected this: "Fukushima is a direct descendant of Toshimiru."

Monty reeled back upon learning this. So, the young troublemaker was - the original master of _Tai Shing Pek Kwar_ was his direct ancestor?! And he never recalled reading the stories or learning from another's tongue that Toshimiru had a wife and child, or children, or had a mistress and a bastard produced. "Master...how is this possible?" he managed as calmly as he could manage.

"Very few know this, but Toshimiru had an affair with a female devotee and fathered a son with her. They never wed for reasons unknown, not that it ever mattered. Nonetheless, young Fukushima is proud of his heritage that his ancestor's monastery for the secret _ninjutsu_ technique and Mystical Monkey Power - the latter which he has sworn to be tempted by, because he has been trained well since his family left him at barely the age he was old enough to swing a _shuriken_ at a target. He's very much like you, Fiske-san, in more ways than one - except for the fact he is of blood to the founder of our cherished school."

Both of them from honorable families - but he was not a descendant of the great warrior whose statue stood outside this room's window, whilst the young bothersome one was. He knew that Monty Fiske was here for obvious reasons, therefore saw him unfit to carry his ancestor's legacy. He must believe that he himself was rightful to inherit the power - but did he know where the four magic monkeys were at this very moment?

Monty knew he had yet to prove himself as they discussed, but it was only the first day. After tomorrow, the sooner the better so he could find out what he must to with this burden his mother claimed on him.

But in the meantime, now that night had fallen, he thought it best to see Kimberly before lights out. He had one hour left, and he had to make haste, for Monty wasted no time going to her room, making sure to knock, then waited for the occupant to call for whoever was on the other side to come in.

She was at the window, looking out at the night and moonlight shining out on the flora and safari. A fiery waterfall fell over the back of a kimono adorned with a dreamy floral pattern in tones of ocean blue, rosy red and icy blue, reaching her ankles. She was a vision that while he would always appreciate, he never thought he'd see _this form._ She was a rare jewel. Turning away from the Japanese serenity, Kim's smile was in place when she saw who visited her at this time of night, young as it still was.

"Did Fukushima get his?" she asked coyly.

He chuckled. "Master Sensei is placing him on kitchen duty for a week, maybe two to come, and that includes serving the honored guests who so happen to be us and Ronald," he stated proudly, stepping into the room and closing the door behind him. He was still laughing when he sat down in the middle of the room, crossing his legs. "I wanted to make sure that your honor and dignity was still intact."

She plopped down in front of him. "Now you're talking to me like you're actually one of them."

"You forget I am actually a ninja in training, my dear," he teased, reaching out and thumbing the tip of her nose just to make her giggle. "His actions were far more exceeding than the Rockwaller girl has ever bestowed upon you." He sighed. "It's because of his lineage that he spites me out of the three of us."

"Meaning?" Kim questioned, mimicking the cross-legged position in front of him.

"Meaning his ancestor is none other than Toshimiru, the mighty founder of this school."

The gawk on her face now present was more suitable than spoken words. "To keep it brief," Monty continued calmly, not surprised but still dismayed, "his ancestor was actually Toshimiru's illegitimate son, therefore marking him as a direct descendant. His family is very proud and honored, but even blood cannot prove you are worthy of the Mystical Monkey Power. I do not know if Fukushima seeks it, but it's certain he knows not where the statues are. But if he does learn as I know I will..." He trailed off then, closing his eyes and refusing to dwell on that possibility. Sensei's words were still clear in his mind, as were the assistant wisdom of Hirotaka and Yori. He fought long and hard to resist temptation and inflict pain upon others, believing with all his might that he would not become a monster. He would not become what Toshimiru's right hand had taken for himself.

"Well, then, we can't let that happen, can we?" Kim asked with her optimism back on the rise. "No one will slip it from the tongue, right, Monty?"

"Ah...that can always be easier said than done. The ninja have their methods of finding out well-guarded secrets - as do the young and inexperienced ones, taking us all by surprise. Just as they greeted us at the great fall."

Her face fell then, at a loss for words. Dealing with the ninja thus far had taken her off her guard more in the slightest than she expected, but wasn't she Kim Possible - the girl who could do anything? He gave her a small smile and leaned forward to place a chaste kiss on the cheek, which she turned onto him with a flash and locked his mouth with hers just as he was pulling back.

"What has gotten into you today?" he purred, cracking a smirk at one corner.

"That's my way of thanking you, and because I want to."

However, despite the innocence in her face and her voice, her eyes told another story. They were glittering in a manner that could mean only one thing, which surprised him. After days ago, in which they agreed that the right time would be special, he had to ask - "Are you sure you're ready for this now?"

She nodded, chewing her bottom lip which struck a minor nerve. "I'm still strong on the right time...and I think we've waited long enough," she breathed against his lips, taking his bottom in between her teeth and biting gently, stimulating his blood and fiber. He growled when a little blood was drawn, the coppery taste minor but coming in a thicker stream after his tongue licked it away.

"You're right...it's been long enough."

~o~

She hadn't been able to keep her insides under check as of lately, and with the way Fukushima rattled her the wrong way, she was tempted to lash out at him in personal combat, but did ninja refuse to engage in such petty disputes like this? She had been mulling over this that night after everyone retired to their rooms for the night. Tomorrow would be another day to face...

...and then Monty visited her now, when she never expected it.

Just the sight of him stirred her in a greater way than before. They had been here for only a day, and trouble had brewed in the form of one rude Fukushima. Sensei had dealt with it, but she wondered if kitchen duty serving the guests would even teach him a lesson. If the story Monty had been told was true, then his ego must be that big. He might be protective of his ancestor's school and its secrets, but what else...

Both he and Monty must seek the Mystical Monkey Power, but if there were two of them, one of them must be noble enough to prove themselves to wield it after centuries' sleep.

This talking was enough for one night. There had been one thing on her mind that increased like a rising flame with the wind driving it in the same direction of the unfortunate landscape. His lips were right there, waiting for her. He did not expect it, nor did he think tonight would be the right time because her body and heart both knew it was after everything, and the thirst needed to be quenched. She was done waiting; she would show him and let loose the side she never knew she had before.

Those lessons she read about and talked about with her mother and the girls had better be worth it. And Monty's shameless confession note and that moment before his fireplace had better be even more.

Biting his lip was something she never thought she'd do. It was raw and animalistic, but wasn't that the best kind? He was part animal by birth, so his response told her he liked it and wanted more. The defenses were dropped at that point, no going back now. No second thoughts, the decision made.

Her heart was racing, thundering against his matching breastbone when they both found themselves on their knees, bodies mingling together in a frenzied embrace and still clothed but needed to be rid of them. No one was coming through the door at this time of night, but you could never be too careful. Only that did not seem to stop the raging fire between them, rich and sweet at the same time. Had this been in their regular circumstances, the warning bells would have gone off, but it seemed the red thread had no new plans in store and had no intention of being broken.

Kim was the first to break the contact and hurry to get him out of his gi clothing, undoing the sash and opening the black fabric to reveal flexing, lean muscles. He shrugged it the rest of the way off before reaching to shove down the rest of the way, until there was nothing left but the black wrap around his lower half. Kim was looking for a way to untie that and reveal what marked his side of the species when his strong monkey hands came up to her kimono which had been given to her by Yori, having no trouble finding its sash and opening the silk to show bare flesh and a V-neck lace bralette. His eyes darkened like molten minerals. Her moist skin on fire, she let the kimono slide down her back and left the back of her bra to be unclasped by her own hands. Now both her breasts were revealed before his eyes now.

Were there ever any words spoken? Necessary speech? None of the sort. He'd seen one breast before, but now both were for him, but on equal parts, there was one more thing left to do. At the same time and in perfect harmony, they disposed of the last of their garments without breaking eye contact.

The rest of his physique no longer did justice for his manhood. What rested down there, pulsating between those thighs, was a measure of six inches, thick amidst a surprisingly meager raven patch of hair. For his love of monkeys and his human masculinity, she expected to be more with what he had on his hands and feet, other parts of his body. He was studying her in a similar way, unable to tear his gaze off the small auburn strip below her waist.

"Kimberly," was the first and only word he would say to her after he crawled her way and took her into his embrace for another passionate kiss, tongues coming to mate with each other. The lock was primitive at its finest, hungry and unable to wait.

She found herself on the floor, her hair fanning out beneath her like flames across the floor. There was Monty above her in his glory, handsome and ferociously aroused. He crossed the bridge between her splayed legs and brought his hips into contact with hers. His upper body loomed over her as he captured her throbbing neck with bruising force. Slow and gentle - if that happened, this fun would have been missed.

"Are you ready?" he asked after placing more attention upon her breasts; a hand slid between their bodies and found her, probing and finding Kim's molten sex and sensitive treasure, jolting her to life. The bud was ready to bloom. His words asked three things of her.

First, he was more than ready to drop his barrier and let her in.

Two, he was beyond prepared to blossom her into a full woman.

And three, this was the final bridge they would cross together to the point of no return.

"I'm ready, Monty. I trust you." She brought hands to either side of his face, urging him, to which he obliged and broke through the one thing she saved specially for him. The pain was there, but it didn't last. Soon, it gradually gave way to the flames consuming them.

~o~

"Master Sensei?"

"Yori," the old man responded as he ended his meditation in his private rooms. The lanterns above gave a comforting glow. "Thank you for coming at my request. I trust you know why I called you."

She bowed her head. "Yes, Master. When can we begin Lord Fiske's test?"

"Tomorrow is the day. The time is coming, but he must begin." Montgomery Fiske had been his best student at the same time as Hirotaka when both boys had been young and from respectable families, but what one's father brought on the other despite academic intentions had cursed them both and ignited the fire in another of the present time. The battle to begin would determine the fates of all three.

 **One of the things I enjoyed most about one of my last fics unrelated to this one, "The Monkey King Takes His Queen", was expanding the mythology of the Mystical Monkey Power, and the story of Toshimiru was amongst. This time I altered what I had done last time, and Kirayoshi who was his fallen right hand is named after little Kirayoshi O'Brien, a character from "Star Trek: Deep Sace 9".**

 **Whoo, there was a lot of steam to bring into Kim and Monty consummating their love with elements of the song from Phantom of the Opera. :$ But now, what does Sensei have planned for him, Hirotaka and Fukushima?**


	19. Still Here

**It's much more difficult to bring to life the history between Monty and Hirotaka - and not long now, the epic conclusion of this story. I'm currently wrestling with ideas, because the last thing I want to do is force anything and bring an unsatisfying end.**

 **Blue Kitsune brought back the memory of Disney's Treasure Planet, specifically the main hero's theme of "I'm Still Here" - and suddenly it gave off the "I must honor my family and myself, but how as I am a boy?" (Her words XD)**

Chapter Nineteen

Still Here

 _Their stances were assumed, the two young men garbed in white and their hands held up in the axe position. Typically, the fists made were not the signs of ready to fight; it was not merely child's play._

 _Both of them were masked and hiding their identities, but only they knew each other at this time as did their master and surrounding peers who watched intently this latest hand-to-hand duel - which would involve more depending on which latest secret technique would be taken if one failed._

 _Sensei's hand raised before he called out to them in the native tongue to attack._

 _He was the first to make the move on his opponent, being the more aggressive and ready to attack first; his partner knew that and anticipated the first hand strike which targeted the front of his body connected his shoulder to his rib cage, meant to strike a chakra point, but not to kill. Ninja were meant to die, but today would not be the day for them as they were merely seventeen years of age. The other student delivered a blow to the same spot if inches below, which he saw coming and dodged by throwing himself beneath the other and gracefully regaining his footing to lash out a kick to the other's hipbone, stunning him._

 _The other ninja blocked the blow with his hand before surprising him with the drawing of a hidden_ kunai _, slashing out at him. His own was drawn, then copied the other's dance in which they both parried about in circles - until he found himself knocked down by his opponent, on his back and the subject of graceful cheers with no need to shout. Beneath his mask, his cheeks flushed with humiliation._

 _A tiny part of his mind suggested he go ahead and remove this, if this was going to bother him at all in the slightest. He might get lectured later for this, but he didn't care. Sighing and drawing some air back into his lungs, he reached to pull the white mask off...revealing the face of Montgomery Fiske, son of renowned explorers Thomas and Anne Fiske, whose names had a place in Yamanouchi history._

 _The other opponent took off his own facial covering, revealing the face of his lifelong friend who was the son of Thomas Fiske's comrade here at Yamanouchi. "No hard feelings, Monty-san," Hirotaka said smoothly, brushing back some spiked hair, "but while you are excelling with hand-to-hand and bladework, your footwork could use some improvement."_

 _Fiske growled when he leaped to both his feet. He wanted to bite back that his father mastered the art before him - but what wasn't known or spoken aloud from his own lips was that he wanted to be better than Thomas. His mother feared this, yet somehow she sent him here to learn this_ Tai Shing Pek Kwar. _"Your father and Hirotaka's father learned this, and now you and Hirotaka will," she'd said. "It's another part of the family...heirloom. You were born this way for a variety of the same reason." She'd taken both of his bare hands, genetically simian altered while he had still been in her womb. He remembered being baffled beyond belief, because how could this not be scientific?_

 _"The doctors were not able to find any known matched conditions involving abnormal hair growth - at least, not with your case, my son," Anne had said sadly, "and for that, there were a handful of the medical staff to lose their wits at what you could possibly grow into, so I had to do everything I could to protect you from scandal."_

 _What Hirotaka may or may not have seen coming was that he'd drawn another_ kunai _and twirled it along with its companion in both hands. He acted fast and did the same before repeating their earlier petty but lethal dance of the daggers. Perhaps this was only limited, Monty found himself realizing, when there was still so much more to use. Hands and feet on his part was the answer, but Sensei had forbade him lest he wanted to be shown as a physical outcast. Only Sensei and Hirotaka were let in on his cursed birth._

 _But on his part? He saw it as a gift that marked him apart from other humans who were so limited in strength._

 _Monty Fiske did a backflip four, five times before landing on the opposite wall decorated with assorted ancient weapons that had been preserved and guarded since the birth of this school. Everything from_ katana _to_ wakizashi, _the daggers_ tanto _to the similarly fashioned_ kaiken _\- he selected the wooden_ bokken _which was modeled after_ katana _and used specifically to train. This wasn't lethal, but this was vital to the victory of one of them. Seeing this, Hirotaka swirled his daggers and hid them back into his gi, before copying the multiple backflips and grabbing a_ bokken _of his own._

 _His muscles burned and throbbed with each applied pressure to the crafted practice weapon in both of his hands, but he would not give his opponent the satisfaction and let him beat Monty, the son of a British nobleman. He had two motives on his mind for this: to honor his family, but also to motivate himself. He would show that he had a purpose, that he would be above and beyond what he was now someday - and would put this so-called family curse to good use._

 _And best his opponent was what he did, for within several moments, Hirotaka was on his back as he'd made Monty, with the mahogany_ bokken _pointed at his heart, telling him he lost but would not be killed. Icy blue eyes clashed with ebony ones, glittering and reflecting the other's._

 _"You are better than I am," Hirotaka said under his breath, though the deep disappointment in his eyes was clear to the other's eyes. He did not fight to become a true ninja for greater purposes, but because it was simply a great honor for the world. But he had not grown up the way Montgomery Fiske had; he was not born with something unnatural caused by something his own parents discovered and thrust upon his being._

 _"Well done, the both of you," Sensei was saying as he came to stand between them, "however, you are both not at the greatest of levels I would have expected as of yet."_

 _Both young men turned to look at him with utter disbelief. They - they were not yet nearing the level of perfection? Monty stopped paying attention to Hirotaka at the moment and instead let his mind race with how to make himself better, when the old man added, "However, you have both showed vast improvement since last time. I am pleased to say you are nearly finished with your training. You bring great honor to yourselves as well as your families."_

 _However, both of them saw behind the kind praise that there was more than meets the eye, and they were both prepared. He dismissed the other students around them and asked them both to remain behind. "I am firm when I say you are both improving...however I must point out your separate flaws."_

 _"Master?" Hirotaka acknowledged with a brief bow of the head, but Monty not so much as he fought so hard to keep himself opened to any suggestions._

 _"Hirotaka - you must never let your guard down. And Monty - your stances are far more off than any of our students would. Should this get out, we must avoid vicious talks of any sort. Only for your sake, Fiske-san, and your mother would die far sooner than when she reaches her fifth decade of life if she learns your secret has been let out. Do you wish for that to befall on your family?"_

 _Now it was his turn to acknowledge. "No, Master. My father would have died for nothing."_

 _"As mine would have done so if I do not match up to him," Hirotaka concurred, looking at him now with hardness. Sensei appeared satisfied with both answers._

 _"It pleases me that you are learning to not let pride control your actions. Pride always comes before a fall."_

~o~

"Ronald, you must know to focus, avoid, and to trust your instincts and nothing more," Monty instructed him during late afternoon as they stood with a log intact as well as the other students with the same tools. The point of this lesson was to test your strength to break through wooden barriers, for example. He could only hope Ronald would step up as he hadn't fared well since their arrival here.

At his signal, placed in command by Sensei's word, axe-hands were brought down to split the logs in half - but Ron thought he could take the more reckless, challenging way instead and targeted the great tree nearby - but the entirety of the broken stump sent the much greater half toppling into the wall behind it, shattering debris and earning disapproval looks from all around him, Monty himself included.

Did the young fool honestly think that he could take the easy way to prove his superiority?!

"Even _I_ started out small while I was here," he hissed to Ron whilst they inspected the damages done, which Monty offered to pay for, but Sensei brushed this off as it was merely accidental. Hmph, where he was from, if you made a mess, you either pay for it or clean it up yourself.

"You know what, Monty?" the lad complained as he helped clean the mess up. "Maybe I'm not cut out for this ninja stuff." He exhaled sharply. "I wish Kim was here right now to back me up." She was elsewhere for the day, for whatever reasons that Sensei needed her for, but she was just as oblivious as they both were. Monty sighed; his old master continued to have his reasons for secret talks as he had with him and Hirotaka long ago. But that matter did not tie with him and Ronald.

"You truly have no idea what kind of arrogance you are giving off with this," he said, which earned blinking eyes of dismay.

"Excuse me?!"

"You heard me right, Stoppable. Showing off never makes it easier. Remember I was once a student here; I never showed off even after the first two weeks of coming here. Sensei pulled me off and sat me before him, speaking in his Confucius wisdom that a ninja's honor is not to flaunt himself, but to use it wisely and for the sake of others. True, you can obtain a sense of pleasure from feeling it within yourself, but in the end, you dishonor not only yourself, but your fellow comrades. I learned that the hard way before I finished my training."

He lowered his eyes to the ground before returning it to the direction of the brick and plaster being reapplied to the cracked wall, with numbers of students and staff difficult to count. "I recall when I was not much younger than you and Kim are now, after a sparring I had with Hirotaka before Sensei and the rest of the school. I bested my own dear friend whose father was extremely close to mine, but both of them met terrible ends. It was that written history that our relationship was somewhat marked. Even though we were both two of Sensei's greatest pupils at the time, our time outside these walls became more, shall we say...burdened. His mother died giving birth to him not long following her husband's sacrifice. Unlike my own mother raising me alone, he grew up without both parents and was raised by Sensei and his fellow students. In some ways, we half had things in common whilst others we were so different.

"As we grew up in this school for some years, whilst I was also obtaining my archaeological degree, we fought long and hard against each other. A real warrior should never let his emotions get the best of him, either, not even if it were his best friend he was fighting whether it was a real severance of that bond or if it were practice. Never show mercy, it was stated, but hold onto the honor code of never killing the unarmed adversary who is incapable of fighting back. That, of course, could change depending on the circumstances. Sensei has faced this countless times in his youth; he wasn't always the man he is now."

Indeed, imagine the surprise he expressed, seeing the one mirrored in Ronald's eyes. Like he never thought he'd hear something like this regarding so-called great men - one he hated with a passion, the other he was in awe of at first sight. "Y-you weren't normal to begin with, lived like me," Ron said at last, voice barely above a whisper, "and I was beginning to understand you. Now I see even more. And Sensei..." He trailed off.

"Sensei is a good man, yes," Monty answered softly, "but alas, no good man is perfect." He found himself looking down at his hands, exposed now with their monkeyosity that Ron looked upon with a concealed cringe. A gaze that Kimberly did not look at him with. "You realize this about either of us?"

"But what does all of this have to do with me?"

Now he found himself attempting to mull this over. "Hmm..."

~o~

"Possible-chan, sit."

They were in midst of one of the school's gardens, calm and pristine with a smooth stone gravel path leading into an area surrounded with glassy water. Irises and mimosa as well as cherry blossoms sprayed the greenery with pale colors. The Buddha himself was a ten-foot-long main attraction in the middle of the circular spot she now sat on a bench with the old master himself.

"What's the sitch?" she asked with a small smile he returned only with twinkling eyes.

"This sitch you speak of - it is short for situation."

Kim flushed. "Yeah, I guess it is. It's a word I naturally adopted before I turned thirteen."

"Hmmm...there are not enough sharp young American minds as yours in these days. As naturally, there is so much the Western world does not understand our old ways anymore. Just as there are not enough with a pure heart anymore...at least not as pure as yours is. Your Lord Fiske, I have always known such conflict within himself from the moment he arrived and until the day he completed his training at this school. Hirotaka remained here not only to become the man he is now, but because this is the only home he has ever known. He is dedicated to protecting it and anyone in the world at all costs - much like yourself," he told her.

She found herself liking Hirotaka even more, but knowing his background and how tense his relationship with his best friend was, it did define how different he and Monty were. Monty's birth and the events to follow threatened to take him down the dark path - and that was why she was here, wasn't it?

"Can Monty ever become like that?"

"Only if he is surrounded by those he cares about, and with close connections. He still has a great many ways to go, but alas, what interests me the most is his connection to _you_."

She put a hand over her chest. "Sensei," she said slowly, "it sounds like you're simply saying that my love for him is enough to keep him from straying the wrong way."

"Indeed, it's enough - but is it really, on his part? Possible-chan, I must tell you a story of my own from long, long ago..."

~o~

"See...we all have a purpose in life. Early on, I shut it off for the sake of my own pride. Much of the time, I never acknowledge it, but this time I must for both our sakes. You and I will never truly be the same in which I am what I am, but you spite that part," he told the younger man with hard eyes, which eventually softened. "However, the point is that we all learn everything the hard way. Yes, you have shown what a trickle you are in the mighty river, but that is all how we start."

Ron felt utterly ashamed. His entire body hurt from the extensive combat and envied how Kim and Rufus were. Right now, the naked mole rat was leaping upwards with a small sword customized for his size, and he sliced off numerous cherries from the nearby tree, just for himself. He shook his head and felt like an utter letdown. Football was one thing, but kung fu was another for him. One was far more advanced than the other.

It brought to mind the older man's mention of beating his best friend in a duel. "So," Ron started nervously, "does that mean you and Hirotaka started out like that?"

Monty's lips pulled back in an amused smile. "We did." Then the smile was gone like a puff of smoke. "But it was also when our distance grew. Starting that one time I improved on besting him. Sensei praised us both, but also cared to point out our flaws: Hirotaka had to make sure his guard would never be let down, and my footing had to be watched; I confess I didn't take it well at the time," he admitted with a stifled laugh. "However, I doubt he took it even better. Not long after, when night fell, I followed him to the shrine where his father and mother were given an honorable burial - and their shrine is just beyond."

He motioned ahead, where the broken wall was being repaired. As Monty said, beyond was a beautiful yellow shrine surrounded with trees and resting above a smooth body of water. "His parents were Katsuro and Chiyoko," Monty explained, "and they were revered as one of the oldest-living families since the time of Toshimiru himself. Hirotaka was not descended from the great warrior as Fukushima, but his ancestors of the time were devoted followers and amongst those to separate the four idols." He sighed and looked away from Ron. Pink petals began to fall with the slight breeze at the same time he continued the sad story that struck Ron just as much as learning how sheltered and isolated he'd been all his life.

"I found him kneeling at their respected headstones within, praying in his native tongue. I'm trained in the language, so if you must know what he said -" The Englishman stopped there and gave him a raised eyebrow with the smirk. Ron nodded eagerly, at the same time Rufus jumped up and landed on his shoulder to listen. "- he was whispering, quote, 'Honored Father, Mother, I must not let your sacrifices be in vain. I need guidance towards the righteous path that needs not vanity or greed. I must not let myself fall.' And as soon as he completed, I made myself known to which he hissed at me that while we would always be close friends, he would always know me as the foreigner who knew nothing of a great power beyond comprehension - even if it was thrusted upon me, ultimately becoming a drive of my own will."

He clenched his jaw then, baring his teeth. "I burst then and there: 'You think I don't know what it feels like - to feel that I'm not able to comprehend them?! Look at me, Hirotaka: I'm beyond normal. You, Sensei, Bates and Mother are the only few people who know what I really am, and you don't consider I'm a foreigner; no, not even _half_ a person!' It was not easy to grow up isolated as I have said, from most of the world and having to hide my condition whilst avoiding being close to others because of fearing that if they knew the truth, they'd be disgusted just as you have done when you bore witness to these." He held up his hands then. "I know the cruel world far better in your younger eyes; they jeer and mock at those that are different, treat them like vermin, as though carrying an unholy disease and avoid it like leprosy. I read the stories of how those that were disfigured were looked upon by those outside, knowing I would forever be with these hands and feet until the day I die seemed like the fate I was to be burdened with...the sins of my own parents as one might say, but do I hate them? No, I don't."

Here was this story again, and it still struck him and brought the tears to the corners of his eyes once again. Heart clenching again, along with every other organ in his body.

So, even though they were on cool terms today, they were still the best of friends, but in Ron's mind, it brought his fear to the surface if that had been him and Kim - no, wait, it almost happened because he didn't trust Monty, didn't support Kim for her sake, but those circumstances weren't completely the same today, and yet...oh, who was he kidding?! Why was he overthinking this? Monty was telling him that he could still become a better fighter if he wanted to, using his own story and Hirotaka's as means to get him pumped up. Mutual rivalry and differences or not, they were nearly alike to help each other.

Ron found himself looking down at Monty's monkey hands, and suddenly he felt very sorry instead of afraid. Just like Thanksgiving. He'd given Monty a chance, and now he was returning the favor by trying to help him here. That was what this was all about. He looked down at Rufus, embarrassed and knowing saying something sappy and tearful would only bring a humiliating raise of the eyebrow from the man beside him. For all he knew, Monty Fiske must still hate HIM so much he would only laugh and ask him what he meant - and that was more than what Ron would bear.

"Okay, I see what you mean," he settled on, "but I _really_ don't know if I'm cut for this. I'm a football player, not a ninja. I can't really do kung fu like you and KP."

"Then you need to focus. I want you to stand up." He did, then Monty helped him get into a stance that had his legs spread and hands together, ignoring any eyes on them. "I want you then to close your eyes and breath in. Let your other senses be opened to you; feel it flow through like a raindrop going down a leaf to the earth. Allow your energy - your chakra - to center itself and go downward towards your feet. Concentrate that feeling as if you can feel the flow of your own blood, listen to the wind as it comes in..."

~o~

"An old man does not always tell his personal past to the youth he teaches for ignorance is for the best - but it is not always the case," Sensei told her, looking ahead and at the Buddha smiling without looking directly at anything or anyone in particular. "My life was very much as painful and tragic as Lord Fiske's and Hirotaka's. I was but a child when my parents left me here and forced to learn the ways of the ninja. However, I endured a far more difficult teacher than I ever was to the students I would later come to teach as my life progressed. And yet..."

She was surprised that he suddenly looked sad, looked far-off as he related his story to her. Everyone had a terrible story one way or the other, but sometimes you could still be surprised; this wise old man before her surprised her as Monty Fiske's revealed secrets had. "I truly tried hard to be a better man than I was, as a young man, yet I felt that there was something in the way of the ninja that wasn't worth anything," he said when he closed his eyes. "Until I met...her..." He stopped then and there to look Kim in the eyes, not even a smile playing on his bearded, mustached lips, but the light was in his eyes.

"Her?" Kim repeated, stunned that in the old days, ninja were allowed to connect with women, but often marriages between old families were arranged.

"Yes, her name was Kiyoko, and she was as pure as her name," Sensei answered with a breath. "And a _miko_ , however."

Now where did she hear that...? And then it hit her. "She was a priestess?"

"Correct. A shrine maiden and shaman, cleansing those and dancing the sacred _Kagura_. Very beautiful, and alas, a man cannot help it within himself - but my honorable side insisted that I not thrust myself upon such a wondrous creature. I was one of the young men during her ceremonies to be blessed, and I remember every small detail of being close to her. But the modern times are far more different than those days, exceeding no more than the _Kagura_ service as well as attending." The _Kagura_ dance was one she also remembered reading about and being drawn by; it was a wild Japanese dance in which you wore a mask and used symbolic props like bells, bamboo canes and a couple others to worship the dawn goddess Ame-no-Uzume. "However, an old rival tribe from the backwoods of this mountain - now long-extinct - captured her one night that I was the one recruited to rescue her. It wasn't long before our love was affirmed, if only our duties and separate destinies were not in the way. As a ninja, I was bound by my code and had to accept that change was a part of life and led to 'growth, wisdom and happiness', as I would later instill in my students."

So, in a way, the story was similar to her and Monty, albeit differed circumstances. It brought tears to her eyes. "What happened to her?" Kim whispered. Sensei sighed again.

"Her temple was attacked in greater numbers some months later, but we were all too late to save her and several of her fellow priestesses - but I blamed myself for not seeing this coming. My old master held me at a distance and reminded me that her death was not my fault to live with. He encouraged me to use it to live on and learn from the experience.

"However, because I loved her more than life, for whatever it offered us, I remember very clearly losing sense and going after the ones responsible. I confess, Possible-chan, that it was I who wiped out the entire clan that slayed her temple as well as my Kiyoko."

Kim gasped, stiffening in her chair, horrified to her core. He...Sensei...murdered his beloved's killers...he couldn't have...

He continued, unfazed. "I did it all for her. But there was one more life left laying before my feet, with my sword stained in blood and was eagerly waiting for one more, and this man was the one who raped her and took her life to keep her tongue silent forever. I cursed him for it, cursed him for his appetites and taking innocent lives - as well as the one I loved. A waste of life, it was...but before I brought my blade down on him, I know I heard _her_ voice. Not only in my mind, but my heart and soul. Her spirit was with me, and I promise you -" He reached over then, startling her by placing a tender, wizened hand on hers resting on one knee. Warmth did little to calm the chill in her blood. "- that I still hear her from time to time, and that is enough for me to live and oversee new generations."

"She stopped you from killing the ringleader," she managed, earning a single nod.

"She told me that the path of madness would have turned me from the man she knew - that everyone knew - into an unrecognizable creature of darkness, and so I brought him to face justice instead. I recall kneeling before my master, ready for punishment for my sins - but instead he placed his hand on my forehead and cleansed me himself. I have since atoned, righteous as my actions were, and obtained a cleaner code than my generation had instilled." His fingers wrapped around hers. "Do you understand my point, Possible-chan? Your devotion to Lord Fiske must guide him away from the dark path, but it will not be easy if you are not connected by the power of love. Even if death parts you, then know that love won't die but make you both stronger than ever before. And right now, he has a very difficult challenge coming for him soon."

She had to close her eyes and inhale through her nose, already knowing where this was going. Her relationship with Monty seemed to have gotten to be more of a challenge because of the fact he was still wanting the Mystical Monkey Power, when all this time, he had everything he wanted and more; it had been his parent's fault for putting this all on him since his birth. When he grew up, he was just so passionate about what he did with his life despite the environment he grew up in, despite pretending to be something he completely wasn't, and that was one of the things that Kim Possible loved about him - but great men like him did fall down the wrong path with the pressure given, and here they were at the place he trained as a ninja and mastered himself outside its walls. He could not yet be trusted with the power because he had to prove he was the Chosen One spoken about.

Kim still had those questions and doubts after all this time, still swearing with her heart to stay with him and help him, like Sensei was proposing - and if Mystical Monkey Power was what Monty wanted, let's see how they could make it work for good. And by good, she meant not only for him, but for all of them.

If his pride really was that big and she didn't see it in time, then it was a fall she had to prevent.

 **Took me two days to flesh this out. XD And with additional help from Blue Kitsune regarding the history of the miko priestess and** _ **Kagura**_ **dance, as well as pointing out how a handful of these backstory scenes were like "Kung Fu Panda", I'm relieved it came out well. Monty and Hirotaka's complicated friendship is dug deeper, he and Ron are starting to bond a little better, and Sensei sees that Kim is a chance for his former pupil. :D**

 **The flashback of the spar between Monty and Hirotaka was based off of the one between Evy/Nefetiri and Anck-su-namun in "The Mummy Returns", but this time involving Japanese weapons and customs. :D**

 **The hard part comes for Monty now in the next chapter. Stay tuned!**


	20. Two Hearts Belong

**I honestly feel we are close to the great explosion. :D Nuff said, just go with the flow and see what happens.**

Chapter Twenty

Two Hearts Belong

Getting Ronald to learn how to meditate was another difficult matter in addition, for when they crossed legs before each other and opened their beings to their surroundings within one of the gardens, this was the second time the younger man fell asleep in front of him, snoring louder than a train. Monty sighed sharply when he broke out of his own reverie and reached over to strike Ron across the face, but not hard enough to leave a bruise afterwards. "Ron! Honestly, you are always going to fall asleep in midst of relaxation?!"

"What?" the blond whined, rubbing his face and crawling to sit back up. "That's what it does, doesn't it? It helps you relax!"

"Yes, you are right. But to fall asleep literally? Guaranteed to be an embarrassment if you are surrounded by fellow meditators, if you ask me." Monty folded his arms across his chest, looking up at the sky and seeing night fall. "I believe this is enough for the day. You will become a stream in the river in the event of time as I have become the river itself." He stood up at the same time as Ron did.

Brown eyes widened as thin brows shot upwards. "You sound like a class-one narcissist, talking about yourself like that." Monty only chuckled, taking it as a compliment.

~o~

His body was throbbing all day, but with this additional relaxation that ol' Monty instilled in him that he claimed to use for himself to ease the mind and soul, as well as the body. If you asked Ron, it made you fall asleep like THAT kind of music, like Enya and those other girls from the UK. Celtic - Celtic Woman? Yeah, that was them.

What did Fiske expect when he kept falling asleep by accident; that method of "atoning in oneself" was just what he said it was. The old chap really was pushing him to his limits if not Master Sensei, the slick Hirotaka, and his fiancée, what was her name...Yori? Whom he couldn't help but briefly look at before Kim had to whack him in the back of the head and remind him that she was someone else's, and he had Tara back home.

But it wasn't like his interest was _elsewhere!_

He realized he hadn't seen or spoken to her of their own time since they got here, and when he found her, she was just finishing washing up. Still in her kimono which Ron thought was pretty and flattered her, she was splashing water on certain important parts, but Ron adverted his eyes quickly, Rufus hiding in his pocket. But she saw them right away over the steam that was emitting from the small spring. "Ron, I was wondering when we'd catch up," she said cheerfully. "You're Monty's personal trainee now, right?" She was putting her hair in its ponytail. "I hope you boys are getting along better."

"Uh, yeah, we are," Ron answered. Except the fact that His Lordship of the monkeys was a bit more brutal than he should have expected, his mind added, but who was he to continue to talk about the man like this any longer, after everything they'd been through? Kim walked over to sit on one of the smooth rocks and exhaled sharply at the pleasing heat that seared her flesh, muscle and nerves.

"Oh, this sets my blood to lava levels!"

She threw her head back and moaned, as if wanting to forget serious sitches and just relax herself. Now Ron realized he could use one himself. "Ooh, yeah this rocks!" he exclaimed when he dipped a hand into the spring. In joy, Rufus screeched and leaped into the water and rose to the surface, laying back and floating, sighing and closing his eyes. Ron hurriedly took off his ninja garb till he was down to his underwear and dipped himself in, exhaling at what both his little buddy and Kim had felt. These ninja really knew how to relax the senses after long grueling hours. And when it came to the big fights...

...oh, yeah, if he just got better, then he might match up to Kim in future missions! And ol' Monty was really encouraging him, wasn't he?! He was complied to laugh with it finally hitting the mark in his brain. Maybe he wasn't as bad as he seemed after all, with or without his crazed obsession with this Mystical Monkey Power -

"Hey, KP, you and Sensei," he started.

Her eyes snapped open with remembrance. "Oh, yeah, he told me a...sweet but disturbing story about something that happened in his youth. Involved a priestess of these parts, how he loved her and she loved him back - but their different lives prevented a happily ever after. Then one day, she was..." Her words were now strangled. "...raped and killed."

Ron swallowed; Rufus shrieked and leaped in the air. There were no words to escape him as he wasn't sure what to think of this. His heart leaped into his throat. "Sensei, WHAT?!" Rufus cried, scrambling out of the pool and diving into Ron's folded gi on the edge of the pool.

A tear fell down Kim's cheek. "Yeah, and since he was still young, he lost it and took revenge on the ones responsible, but the leader he spared only because he heard her voice -"

"Wait, he HEARD her voice?!" She looked at him warningly, causing him to look down.

"She told him he was becoming a monster by murdering the perpetrators, that this was not the way of the ninja - nor was he the man she knew. He was debasing not only himself and her memory, but the others around him. Once you've started taking a life, you could never go back, so it was a miracle he stopped himself in time. He never did anything like that again, instead using the experience and her loss to influence on younger ninja trainees as he grew older." Her eyes were glazed over. "I couldn't believe it either...but it helped me with a point. I'm helping Monty and won't leave him alone because..." She stopped there and looked down, then flinched and slid off the rock. "Ow, I think my butt will be on fire if I stay too long," she said, making them both laugh, but Ron wasn't letting this slide.

"Because what?" he pressed on.

"I love him."

Wait...did he _hear_ right?! "Kim, you -" he sputtered in disbelief, stopping himself in time. "Tell me it's not the crush you had in high school." If this was what it was, he didn't know what to think about it, but really, it didn't matter what he thought. Sure, Monty Fiske was a classy, respected rich guy with an explorer's degree and rugged good looks, all the things to make a girl swoon, but he also had two monkeys for pets and also worked with them for his life's work - and plus he was even _born_ with hands and feet of those freaks of nature! But, his rational mind added, that wasn't his fault. And knowing Kim, she looked past all of that. "Does he know?"

"Yes, it's gone on since I last visited him at his castle and stayed the night there. He tried to push me away, but you know how stubbon I am," she said with a bat of the lashes. "He needs me as much as I need him. I don't care about his money, his common interests with me, or what he looks like. He's a good man...but he also might be taking the wrong path by seeking out the Mystical Monkey Power. That was what Sensei wanted to talk to me about; I'm the one to help him."

Ron inhaled. Was this the real life version of "true love conquers all"? If you asked him, a man like Monty Fiske needed more than just the love of his best friend to be a better man. He needed some more tough love. But from what he told him, Hirotaka tried hard enough, but even their complicated friendship wasn't enough. Even his father tried to stop Fiske's father and failed, destroying that friendship as well. "KP, there's something I should tell you, too. He told me more to his and that Hirotaka guy's friendship, besides their fathers." And so he finished up the bath in the spring while telling her everything, word for word, from his memory.

Her reaction was just what he'd expected. "Hirotaka also wanted to match up to his father's death, but he grew up an orphan unlike Monty," she said sadly. "Monty thought he didn't understand him at the time just because of differences, thought his best friend didn't see his own suffering. And he accused you of the same thing once."

He swallowed and nodded just as he was drying up. Just like he had done before. "I did the same, yeah. And I called him a freak of nature. You were right when you said he was a...good man." He swallowed the lump in his throat, trying to swallow down the guilt from his antics at Fiske Castle.

"And I hurt you, too, as him when I threw it in his face."

"He might forgive you a little easier if you told that to his face," she told him, walking up and putting her arms around him. "I forgive you, best friend."

A tear slipped down his cheek. Rufus sighed with awe as he watched the scene. "KP," Ron managed, "if you want to get serious with him after this, then I'm there for you like last time." Besides, he didn't need to tell her aloud, but His Lordship was a real man unlike "Eric", and he certainly wasn't Josh Mankey. But he also wasn't perfect; no one was. Ron himself wasn't, but Tara was still there for him.

But that left one problem with Monty Fiske. "But what about his crazy obsession with the Mystical Monkey Power?" he asked when they broke the embrace. "What do you plan to do to make sure he stays out of trouble? This might not be easy for you..."

~o~

 _"Listen, KP, I just want to say if he ever tries to hurt you like Eric - I mean, well, if he..."_

 _"Yeah, don't worry about that. He's anything but a synthodrone. He's ten times the man Eric was - and he's got the whole package going on!"_

 _"Eww, that I did_ not _need to know, Kim! Too much info, too much info!"_

She had to suppress the chuckle that threatened to come out of herself as she visited the kitchen and asked for a couple rice cakes, dwelling back on their conversation. Despite Ron finally being mature, his antics were still that of his teen self which made her wonder if he would ever really change.

The master chef kindly gave her two rice cakes that had been dessert, and then asked her if she would like some tea to go with, but she politely declined. After her talk with Ron, it felt like so much weight had been lifted off as if it had never been there. When he and Rufus headed to their rooms, she let loose the cries and let the healing steam dry the tears that moistened her cheeks. Both stories - on Sensei's side and Monty's - as well as Ron admitting how wrong he was, but as wary of the mystique as she was...how could this have just gotten better in a few days of being here?

A little ook brought her attention down, seeing one of his monkeys in front of her. "Oh, Chippy," Kim said, recognizing the male. "Where's your master?"

She burst out laughing when he tugged on the end of her gi pants leg and pulled to her left, leading in the direction of the gardens. His mate, Mila, was elsewhere, enjoying their new surroundings and being wild. But they were also too well-behaved to make a mess of anything. How he trained them after first bringing them home was a wonder that worked.

Ron seemed to be adjusting to them, as well, because they both liked him and made no attempt to bite or maim him like Bobo the chimp used to do. Both monkeys were also showing him what they were taught in martial arts, from what she'd seen earlier. Looked like Ron was starting to get over his monkey issues, but not so fast.

When she stepped across the grass, the gentle wind caressed her skin as the moon arose in a quarter casting enough light across the land. Wordless voices whispered in the tops of the bonsai, cherry and maple trees, spilling hidden secrets that she couldn't understand - but she could have sworn that they told her that the man she was looking for was somewhere in the deeper parts.

Something flashed overhead in a buzz, heading from tree to tree in a way no human being ever would. She stood frozen in her surprise, keeping hold on the wrapped rice cakes but being careful not to crush them. Sharp vision caught the outlines of a human definitely, but the movements were by no means...which meant that this was...

"Monty."

His name left her lips in a whisper matching the wind. He had not yet showed her his monkey side, swinging about in the wild, except his martial arts expertise which showed how he wasn't different from her at all, and trying his best to help Ron with it. He must have no idea he was being followed, and how could she without her grapple gun and other gear? She didn't even know what he was up to, but maybe a night exercise of his own that he hadn't done in awhile, that he thought now to take advantage of?

Kim's legs found their will to jump through the landscape and trees, tailing after the pouncing figure aided only by the moonlight and scattered lanterns about. She had no solid decision whether to call out to him or not, but to just go with the flow and follow him until he stopped. And the farther they went, the deeper they went, the brighter the fire burned in her nerves...

...and soon she found herself ensnared from behind and pulled into the trees overhead. She cried out in surprise before a calloused hand covered with hair on the back silenced her, and icy sapphire eyes twinkled when they met hers.

"Stalking, are we?"

He let go of her so she could answer. "Wanted to see what Your Lordship was up to," she replied, making him bare his canines.

They were crouching on the thickest of a branch, and his body was close to her - and she gasped when she noticed, unsuspecting, that he was naked save for his undergarments. He was flying through the trees like a wild man and not caring in the slightest that one of the ninjas here could catch him like this, but he wasn't ashamed. His chuckle reverberated, and then his attention directed downwards to what was still in her arms. He reached for the small bundle and took it, opening it and smiling at the sight of the rice cakes. "Kimberly, you sweet minx, I should tell you that I am hungry, but not for food..." Now his voice was deeper now, more seductive and suddenly making the air warmer. She did not know when they ended up on the ground, but he'd taken her into his arms and swiftly, gracefully brought them both down to the soft, welcoming earth.

The bundle of rice cakes fell to the ground, forgotten now.

"Why are you naked out here?" Kim managed when he let her down from his arms. He smirked to one corner, raising one eyebrow.

"A habit since I was a young boy. The one time I get to unleash the animal side of myself. You cannot imagine the exhilaration of the wind on my flesh and in my blood, nothing to hide and no one to turn away in disgust." He leaned up to place a kiss on her forehead, inhaling her hair in the process.

For a moment, they stood before each other, holding and caressing exposed muscle as well as clothed curves, not fighting back anything because there was never a need to hold back. Since the beginning, they'd belonged to each other with every breath taken and ever glance connected, and separation across one ocean.

Kim pulled back and reached to take one of his hands into both of hers, examining each long, thick digit and caressing the coarse fur. His pulse throbbed beneath the pads of her fingers, picking up when she brought her lips down and kissed it. His skin was warm and rough from years of hardship. His breath sucked in at the little doses of pleasure she was giving him this way. He then pulled his hand away from her and used it to reach down to unfasten her tunic and open it to reveal her body. She finished his job by discarding her undergarments and trousers to the ground.

Simian hands found themselves coming around a hip and another going up the front of her body, exploring and knowing her outlines well in this second time. That last time when he deflowered her on her floor, with the moon streaming in on them, made her into this woman she was now, it had erupted with a fiery pain that subsided into a form of dipping in the hot spring. This man who had animalistic urges was in more control of himself than he had realized, making sure this was for them both and not just himself. Rough lips suctioned on her breasts and shoulders, eliciting more shivers down her spine, and his hands left her hips to boldly go beyond and squeeze her rear before tracing her small back and spine. In midst of her paradise, she reached for the wrap around his waist and pulled it free from him.

Her thigh came up to hook around his waist, feeling him hard and stiff, hot but patiently waiting a little longer for her just to enjoy the simple sensation of her pube section slick with her solvent on him. He rumbled against her lips when they met and grinded his body against hers to let her know that she was the reason he felt more alive than he had in his life. An entire life of protection and burdens, eager to make his own destiny - hers had been long and fraught with adventure, but her personal happiness had been a price to pay.

Just as his half-humanity was a price on his soul.

But deep down, their pain made them the way they were now.

And it brought them to each other by the red thread of fate.

"You are my reason to live," he murmured when the kiss was broken. "I'm no longer afraid to give in." He did not need to say anymore.

She returned the kiss, this time on the strong jaw. "I won't ever let you go," she promised. "And I won't leave you if you try to push me away one more time."

It was not long before he was on the ground, letting her take the lead this time because it was a matter of taking equal turns. She arched backwards at his hands caressing her and holding her in place so that she rode his blazing need. Her body let go when it joined with his, searing even when the night was growing colder. If they were animals, they would have had protective fur, but when the climax drew and seed was welcomed into a contracting womb, their body heat amplified tenfold only when the deity of sleep covered them both with a loving blanket, forgetting about all responsibility in the coming morning.

~o~

The sight of the naked couple in their face-to-face embrace under the moon's loving gaze made him narrow his eyes in disgust. Intimate touch, involving the man before him and his concubine, repulsed him just by looking. He was not honorable; he had no right to call himself the Ultimate Monkey Master just because his father before him risked everything to get the statue from their local sacred hidden temple in the mountain.

"San, they must have forgotten about this. I would not mind snacking -"

He turned to one of his followers and snapped, "Keep your voice down, fool!" He glared at the fallen pair of rice cakes that the pair before them had forgotten about in midst of their passion, deciding more than hunger was important. He turned his attention back to Fiske and Possible, both deep in stupor and enveloped in each other's arms, unaware that they were surrounded by the one who bore his eyes down on them and thrilled with being able to do what his mentor and friends would not do with this madman, and flanked by his real supporters.

~o~

When she opened her eyes, warmth washed over her bare skin and her face. She smiled at the bliss, remembering every detail and swimming in the dream beside the man she loved, whom she would do anything for...she moved closer to feel his body against hers for awhile before she would wake him and they would get back to the school where the others were waiting for them...

...but shockingly enough, he wasn't there.

Bolting up, naked, Kim looked around in an attempt to spot her lover, but he wasn't around. Her skin tingled, and her hair was all over the place. Her clothing as well as his underwear was still there, but WHY would he leave it there and roam around in his birthday suit? Unless he found a spring nearby and was bathing currently before he got back. Yes, he couldn't be that far away...

Her search continued for a little while, but when she found said spring, there was no Monty. Now she was worried. "Monty?" she called. No answer. She tried again; still nothing. Her heart began to race with panic. She had to get back to Yamanouchi now, knowing better than to take it lightly and await for him to return. If he had been abducted, then a search was in order just to be on the safe side.

 **So after a night of making love once more, she wakes up to find him gone. :S Just WHO took him away and left her be?**

 **Hayley Westenra's song "My Heart Belongs to You" was inspiration to begin this story from the start, and elements worked their way in here. As well, the Lancelot-Guinevere affair in 1981's "Excalibur" was basis for the Kim and Monty moment. Just such delicious, forbidden sweetness.**


	21. Sins of the Father

Chapter Twenty-One

Sins of the Father

Ninja were apparently too calm to worry, just to take it with rational thinking and come up with a clear, simple solution - but with what troubled Ron, he doubted it would be easy. The gong rang, but when everyone assembled, there was no sign of Kim _or_ Monty.

"Where could they be?" he had to ask any of the other students, including Yori who had come up to him with her hands before herself.

"Stoppable-san, Kim Possible is not anywhere on our grounds."

He started backwards. "Obviously, but is anyone looking for her?!" he asked worriedly, tugging at his hair with the highest levels of anxiety he could remember in his life. This was not like Kim to not show up like this, nor was it like Monty, unless...

"Wait, did something happen?"

Rufus piped up. "Uh oh!" he said in fright.

"Everyone!"

All heads turned in the direction where the voice called. There stood Kim, hair mussed and still in her white gi, skin flushed and her eyes telling everything: she was worried, and it was obvious why.

Monty Fiske was not here.

Oh, yeah, something definitely was going on, by the looks of it. "KP!" Ron yelled, running her way and seeing more than he did. She'd been with him out further last night; his cheeks flushed as he did _not_ want to know what they'd been doing.

"Monty's missing," she panted, leaning onto him and catching her breath after running. "Have you guys seen him?"

"Fiske-san has not yet arrived," Yori told her sadly, then turned to the students watching them all, gathering with interest to hear her story, though since Ron knew her better, she probably did not want to embarrass both her and the missing Lord Fiske by full-out telling them why they were in the gardens. And if any of them were smart enough to use common sense on any sex-ed lessons they'd been given...

It was then and there that all attention was called upon Sensei, who had showed up with Hirotaka at his side, both men grim. The master took it upon himself to speak up. "I had feared the worst. Lord Fiske has been taken from the grounds some time during the night. The time is upon us all."

~o~

 _"...awake at last."_

What was wrong with him? His head swirled painfully, throbbing and numbing every muscle in his body. Voices were buzzing, certain that was what they were, but there were only a few he could manage in his hazed eardrums - but it was no longer what attracted his attention as he forced himself out of his unconscious state.

Monty was stirring as the sound of water dripping down from the heavens and hitting the ground, making a loud sound that seemed to echo inside his head. He opened his eyes, the darkness very much obscuring everything until he was able to adjust to it and look at his surroundings.

Dark craggy walls that were etched deep within its surface rubbing against his back while noting the scent was musty and was somewhere deep, but not sure where exactly he was to be precise. If he had to wager a guess, he had to be somewhere inside a cave or right in a mountain.

Whoever his abductors were, now that he was certain he'd been kidnapped, they could not be far away from the school.

Once his senses cleared, he flinched when he felt the cold, unforgiving rock beneath his naked flesh, and the thick collar of steel around his neck. He was nude as a newborn - if you could appropriately use either human or animal - and chained up like an animal. Well, he had been born partly the latter, but what insult was this?! Sitting up on his knees, Monty growled as he tugged at the collar, wishing he knew there was a lock point -

"That is a grave error. Fighting will only add minor injuries to your flesh, Fiske."

He jerked and assumed the crouching position. He KNEW that voice; he was right all along that the fool could not be trusted by any means! He looked up and saw the figure in black, hooded though, and relaxed with his arms at his sides, looking down at him from his sitting position on a rock. Monty bared his teeth and snarled. "Fukushima."

The other male chuckled. "So, you already knew me," he said casually, reaching for the end of his mask but not pulling it off.

"I know your voice all too well. What is the meaning of this?"

The mask was gone, revealing the angered youth's face. "You already seem to know that answer - from the bottom of your heart, Your Lordship," Fukushima sneered sarcastically, throwing his mask to the ground, before Monty's knees. He spat down at it, drawing a sound combining a snort and a stifled laugh from the younger ninja.

Monty's fingers curled into fists. "By a lucky guess, humiliating me and chaining me up like this -" He motioned down his bare form. "- like a wild animal you can't even tame. What else next, you young fool? This is not the method of a true ninja."

"Because you yourself are not a true warrior! You're nothing but an outsider who thinks of no one but himself - and with no true right to what is rightfully mine."

He growled, locking competitive eyes with the other. " _I_ don't have the right? What gives you the right to decide who deserves the power of your ancestor - a righteous man who built this foundation we have both attended?!" He looked heatedly at Fukushima all the while burning internally like an inferno. "And how dare you say I care for no one!"

Fukushima slid off the rock and took a few strides forward before kneeling before the chained man. "Your father cared for no one but himself, too, when he and his expectant wife raided that temple for the first mystical monkey statue," he pointed out snidely, "because what was it to him? A new find for the museum, not comprehending it was something truly sacred and never meant to be found! No, he just had all of the stories and texts just because it was left to him in his family, just as he and your mother left it all on you, Montgomery Fiske! In my humble opinion, you are worse than your father.

"Not to mention, Katsuro, Hirotaka's father - and your father's closest friend since life began - put his own life on the line when he tried to stop this, but instead he let himself die just to let a thief and his wife get away...and look who was born out of the insanity and a drunk man's demise, widowing his wife who in return hid her only son's deformity away from the world," he finished with a wink that set Monty off.

This had just gotten _beyond_ personal; no one talked about Anne Fiske like this and lived to tell of it!

"Dare you speak of my mother like this!" he roared, lunging forward only for the younger to leap back, but the distance that grew with his back leap and the captive's lunge caused the chain around his neck to tug the front, constricting the muscles around the esophagus and temporarily cut off his air supply. His body jerked and collapsed to the ground, the pain numbing his entire body as well as shooting red and black spots before his vision. Groaning, he rolled over so he lay on his back and looked up at the other with pure, blazing hatred.

"Another mistake, outsider," Fukushima said, kicking him in the side, but this was not compared to his oxygen being blocked for several moments. "You're in no position to dodge any attacks, or even try to escape me - all chained down like the animal you are in and out."

Monty snarled up at him but did not think to repeat his mistake. "What...will you gain from this? From torturing me and eventually killing me?"

The boy laughed. It was ironic that the younger one was the captor and the elder was at his mercy. "Fiske, for a man of your field experience, you had to ask what my motives are. Well, I'll be the humbler one and enlighten you with my answer." He sat back then, crossing his legs in the lotus position as he continued to look down at Monty, who curled into himself before regaining the position of sitting on his knees rather than mimicking the other's position because of his exposed state. Fukushima did a remarkable job of to adverting his eyes as it was obvious disgust shown in them whenever he did.

"It's just as complex as your own reasons for pursuing the power, as well as Hirotaka's for upholding his family honor in which his own father's life had to not have been in vain. But while your mother was lucky to survive giving birth to an abomination, Chiyoko herself should have been so - but on the other hand, I doubt she would have been as strong as dear sweet Lady Fiske. But enough pointing out the flaws of your family and Hirotaka's; it's my turn: my father was not Toshimiru's descendant whilst my mother was, although it was my father's banishment from Yamanouchi that stained our name and deprived me of my heritance."

~o~

"Monty has been taken, and why wasn't I alerted during the night and had known sooner?" Kim demanded, clenching her fists as she looked down at the old man who inclined his head forward once. "And _who_ took him?"

"Alas, a good question with no time to speak in riddles and mystery. I know who took him, and a few possible locations even if it will take some time to plan and search in a day," Sensei answered. "The ones who snatched him without your awareness were highly skilled and possibly used a paralyzing substance that placed him under sedation for approximately a few hours at most before awakening back to awareness. This serum works fast unlike any other you know in the Western world, Possible-chan."

Ron interrupted him with a hand raised. "Okay, Master, sir, but who took him?" he asked, Rufus nodded furiously in agreement.

Sensei sighed. "Fukushima."

A terrible silence befell all of them. Kim did not need to look at Hirotaka, Yori or any of the students to know the horrific betrayal - and even Ron and Rufus looked stricken and sickened - but it hit her the worst of all. Fukushima...maybe it wasn't a surprise after all. He hated them all, but to do _this_?! How could - "Fukushima betrayed all of you," was all she could get out.

"Correction," Hirotaka spat, "he _dishonored_ himself and all of us!"

Sensei closed his eyes. "I have said these words before, but now is appropriate. I fear for us all. It is not only because of his heritage with the mastery of _Tai Shing Pek Kwar -_ but his stained family name."

Kim looked at him, baffled but getting an idea as to where this was going. "Go on," she urged. The old man looked at her wearily, his eyes reflecting how painful the memories were and stricken about bringing them back to the surface.

"His father was a member of our own, and to keep it brief with no time to waste, he had the complex of power over minority, but to betray his oath of honor was the highest cost to pay. His son was barely old enough to walk when this occurred on our own lands. Shichiro intended to poison our source of water and then take the ones left, see to that he and his followers were all left unopposed - thankfully one of our own discovered on time and warned me." He turned his attention then and there to Yori who bowed her head with honor. By doing the math in her head, Kim had to guess it was _Yori_ who warned on time.

"It was me, Kim Possible, who uncovered it one night. I was much younger, having a late night of playing with a dear friend and classmate on the grounds, when we heard the voices and the terrible plot," she said sadly. "Fukushima's father and his cohorts would have taken the mantle over if we lost Sensei and our way of life polluted because of his wife's bloodline and knowing how his only son was special because of the matter. There had been no other way for Fukushima to be recognized unless he took drastic action."

"Oh, that is wrongsick!" Ron blurted out. "To use your son like that, your wife's heritage through the kid, and to seize the throne by betraying your own people around you! How crazy was he?!"

"Yeah!" Rufus blew his tongue out at the imaginary man who betrayed them all at the time.

Sensei held up one hand briefly before lowering it back to his side. "Yes, but because Shichiro was once one of our finest, I simply ordered him banished along with those who followed his orders. We have not heard from them in years, but the man has long since died from natural causes. A handful of his remaining warriors remain, but Fukushima, his son, is the last in his line. The lad remained here as he had been innocent of his father's sins...but those sins have grown on him along with his mother's blood from Toshimiru that have hardened him."

"So, payback's the sitch," Kim stated, earning a nod, then gritted her teeth as she bared them. And now he had her Monty somewhere in the mountains, and who knew what they were doing to him right now. Wherever they were, she and the others around her had no time to lose.

~o~

 _"You have no idea what it's like to be shamed by those you thought were the ones to trust, but Sensei - he betrayed my father and made us look down upon for his action! Is it my fault that my father wished to make us stand out amongst the others, those that were trying to pollute our way of life!"_

 _"Yes, but at what cost? What your father had planned could have harmed many!"_

He heard the stories of how Fukushima's father, the late Shichiro, attempted to take out so many of the Yamanouchi clan, even those that were simple civilians because they would have uprisen and fought back. There were elders and children - innocent people! His stomach turned over and over with nausea at how INSANE and misguided all of this was. But he could only relate with how this was forced onto the boy like his own had, and had grown to accept his destiny - but Monty Fiske knew he was no true ninja resorting to this brutality.

As for these other masked warriors, they were family friends through Fukushima's father and therefore old Shichiro left them to his son, if that was how it was. Fukushima sure did not have the connections to find any lackeys his own age, which made Fiske laugh mentally.

But the mad gleam in the young man's eyes as he motioned for his warriors to remove the collar from around Monty's neck told him that he would not be laughing for long. He closed his eyes and let himself be hauled to his feet, but consciousness didn't last long. He barely felt the prick when his senses were overwhelmed once more with darkness and numbness.

~o~

There were groups out scouting the mountains to see any possible cave locations Fukushima's group held Monty, and they were the best Yamanouchi would offer, Sensei promised her and Ron. There was also every map on this mountain from the school's archives. And this time, Ron seemed to be out of his usual witty comments. He was chewing nervously on some collection of sushi offered to ease his stress levels.

What could be said about Kim? She stressed just as easily, but because the love of her life was in danger, she could not let it dominate her. He must be somewhere in the mountain being strong for her, but what Fukushima was planning for him had to be pushing the boundaries of punishment and torture that a ninja or samurai from feudal times had to bestow upon a prisoner or traitor...she tried not to think about that.

Sensei appeared to be as troubled as she was, and just as calm as he could be. "Alas, I used to name him and Hirotaka the yin and yang, but now befits him and Fukushima," he told her, looking up at her from one of the many maps dated all the way back to the Han Dynasty.

"Yin and yang?" she repeated, even though she was familiar with the balanced opposites of the world.

"Yes, Possible-chan, two differences yet equal in every way - the mind and body combined with the spirit as he will be tested mentally and physically, pushed to the limits and forced to ask the questions that he himself must ask: 'What do I desire in this world - ultimate power or love and hope?'" the elder answered. "Fiske-san has this opportunity to see what is within that he wants."

Half of her wanted to snap that this was no time for Confucius wisdom to teach, but the other half absorbed the information and brought her back to their previous conversation about his hunt for the mystical power. His captivity at the hands of another also seeking the same thing must be asking himself if he should go for the easy route and accept the power to cloud his mind and judgment...or work hard and gain what he had done through his own blood, sweat and tears. "Sensei..."

He interrupted her gently. "You must take me as a collected fool who is letting his current predicament be an excuse to bring further pain, but pain is a way to live, allowing replenishment and growth in the spirit throughout life. But this is the only way to ensure your lover does not fall as Fukushima has." He leaned close to her then and spoke more softly, surprising her.

"I know I have said this before, child, but his time to prove himself as the Chosen One is closer than either he or you think."

Before she could answer, Hirotaka appeared, disheveled but utterly relieved. "Master Sensei, we have found him." A wave of relief rushed over Kim like cool water from a spring. Even Sensei appeared to be exhilarated - as enthusiastic as an old man could be.

~o~

So, this was a way to spend the day in a cave, he thought sarcastically when he reemerged from unconsciousness. These fools really enjoyed this, didn't they? He did not need to ask when he awoke to see what position he was in now - he was still very naked, but now a white drape was around his waist to cover his modesty; oh, joy, his dignity restored but everything he had already seen.

Six candles, all in all, surrounded him as he lay on a slab, with his wrists and ankles shackled - the flames themselves seemed to strangely match the color of blood. He was also surrounded by the ever hooded followers themselves, with their hands in front of them in prayer as their leader himself swiftly stepped out of his hiding place in the shadows, wasting no time picking up what was resting on the pedestal less than a few feet's distance from where the bound nobleman himself was not bothering to struggle and break free. Seeing what Fukushima took off from the pedestal, he felt his eyes widened.

Oh, by the gods...

"You recognize what's going to happen to you, I see," Fukushima noted when he held up the straight dagger, estimated to be about nine inches, handled in bronze and etched with the inscription. Monty nodded, the corners of his eyes burning.

"Sacrificial dagger. I see your true intentions. You really think killing me in a cavern ritual will accomplish this?" Did he honestly think that petty revenge would reserve the wrongs he felt was unjustly to his family name?

Fukushima spat at him as he came to stand beside him. The red flames danced maliciously off the pure steel. "Everything, Fiske."

He had one last chance to bide time. "Fukushima, you young fool, you are as stubborn as I am, I shall give you credit for that. Your father was a fool, a danger to your way of life. You should never had bore growing in his shadow; you could have been your own free man -"

The blow to his face caused his vision to turn white, and pain burst in his cheek, numbing his nerves and flesh.

"The words of an ignorant, spoiled brat who grew up in his own parents' shadow!" the younger exploded. "You have heard every word I said, and yet still, you have no true concept of what I've been through. You think I should forgive and forget what those fools done - but I _won't!_ Because of them, my father died outside these walls like some common beggar while my mother and I were looked on as if we were in the filth!"

Monty closed his eyes and inhaled through his nose. These words...they reflected how he himself grew up within Fiske Castle's walls, sheltered much of his life to protect his birth secret and the family name, never destined to live like the other boys in town. Never socialize with girls and women - but it got him one who had to be on her way to him, the one who accepted the beastly part of him, if she could only get here faster...

He might have been isolated all his life, save for his mother - the woman who suffered and sacrificed so much for him - and Bates, his loyal valet and acting father figure, but he managed to become a respected explorer like his parents before him, and he found he was one with the simians of the world, which he saved and brought awareness to the world, and even had two of them as the true best of friends he never thought he would have, not even as a young boy...

There was still so much more in life he wanted, and that left one more to make him powerful instead of weak and human - or should he say, half human? And how could such great magic be rightful to this one over him, sacrificial dagger in hand, ready to kill the son of the man who found the first of four mystical monkey idols created by the man who mastered the art as well as his loyal followers...his pregnant wife who carried it affected whilst her husband and his best friend fought over its protection...until tragedy claimed the man and left his equally expectant wife alone before dying herself and orphaning their son.

As for Hirotaka, the child born without both parents, swore to honor his father's sacrifice and become a great warrior. He knew from the beginning the entire story, had tried to ensure his foreign friend did not fall down a desolate path - and now the Englishman saw it with wider eyes than before.

 _Everything_.

Hirotaka and Monty Fiske both had terrible births, but neither's father was as guilty as this one's.

"You think killing me will bring an end to all of this...but it will only bring you nothing but endless pain and torment like your father suffered. If you ask me, Fukushima," he sneered, "you are nothing and never will match up to your father, or Hirotaka's - or even mine." He bared his canines with the final trigger to the offense.

"And never will you be as powerful as Sensei _or_ your great ancestor."

He'd been watching the signs from the clenching of fists until the knuckles turned white, the blade trembling along with the entire body, and finally the savage expression. Eyes flashed wildly while the teeth bared as he growled and fought hard to keep himself under control.

And then silver flashed before his eyes.

Pain slashed across his chest, red splashing in a small amount across his abdomen. Monty cried out in pain but held it in with a hiss. He stared at his own blood on his flesh, the deep maroon gash not severe but enough to freeze him in a mild convulsion in time for Fukushima to raise the blood-soaked blade once more, chanting briefly in his language before reverting to English. His followers echoed in the background with a Gregorian chant.

"By the war god Hachiman - our divine protector - and Susanoo of the sea and storms, I will spill the blood of the one who dares to insult a rightful heritage and ancient family name, whose family desecrated the first of four ancient tombs of a wondrous simian power, to claim what is rightfully mine..."

And at long last, a familiar voice cut through to the rescue.

"Let him go!"

 **At Blue Kitsune's ever helpful suggestion, Fukushima's disgraced family and his father's attempts at a coup were based off of the Uchiha rebellion in Naruto, specifically by Itachi's hands (and my boyfriend LOVES him). And for his son to carry that burden was really emotionally challenging to flesh out - and to go as far as attempt to sacrifice his rival while reciting two great known gods along with blaming Sensei, Monty and his family, as well as Hirotaka's! That's beyond the boundaries of insane, if you ask me.**

 **Now the others to the rescue. :D**


	22. Salvage

**Such epic climaxes have to be handled with care. XD Always have been that way.**

Chapter Twenty-Two

Salvage

Seeing the knife covered in blood, raised over the half-naked form of Monty, chained down and bleeding, made her erupt inside like the fury of Mt. Fuji - St. Helens, Kilimanjaro? A volcano was a volcano. The bubbling moved onwards to her flesh.

Fukushima was going to sacrifice her monkey man!

Oh, not on her watch...

"By the war god Hachiman - our divine protector - and Susanoo of the sea and storms, I will spill the blood of the one who dares to insult a rightful heritage and ancient family name, whose family desecrated the first of four ancient tombs of a wondrous simian power, to claim what is rightfully mine..."

Yori whispered to her. "Possible-chan, we distract the warriors -" And there were five or six of them. "- while you free Lord Fiske."

She swallowed and nodded. On her back was the sword given to her by Sensei, a _katana_ of her own - but before he let her join the others, he took her hand and leaned up to whisper, "Your lover's turn to wield his own weapon will come once he returns to us." He always seemed so confident that things would either go badly or smoothly, and they would. But what would happen if an error was made? "Fate plays a mysterious hand that even I, a mere mortal man, will not always see coming," he told her when she asked him this.

Now fate brought them here, and her rage was uncontrollable as she made herself known, stepping out of her hiding place with her fists raised, and her weapon on her back, ready when she would need it. "Let him go!" she shouted to Fukushima who stopped what he was doing and looked at her with eyes shining with mingled annoyance and amusement, completely different from the youthful hatred of day one.

"Kimberly!" Monty yelled, now tugging at the shackles holding him. She growled at the sight of him naked, imagining that Fukushima thought to humiliate him and drag him this way and _away from her in the middle of the night_ \- he had the balls, didn't he?!

"Oh, look who has come to rescue her lover," the traitor sneered, "or should I say... _beast?_ " He turned his attention back to his captive. "Must be quite the whore you got for yourself, to be willing to lie with you as such."

Something inside her blew up that she had to fight harder to keep herself together for the sake of the man chained down and those behind her. Being called a whore was the last thing she ever expected to be called in her life by anyone. "He's no beast, you traitor - you are, for thinking you are a man when all you are is a pathetic little coward and jealous that Monty is ten times the one you can ever hope!"

From the corner of her eye, where Ron, Hirotaka and Yori were hiding, they looked at her worriedly, wondering if this was a good idea to antagonize him, and it sure as hell was. She knew it would sting him, hurt his pride compared to her love, wanting him to train his focus onto her and use his own ego to her advantage. "It must have been frustrating to be looked upon and knowing you can never measure for your own worth," she went on, "and instead try to do this which goes to show how disappointing you are."

She was surprised that Hirotaka leaped out of his hiding place to join her. "You have brought more shame onto your family than you can possibly imagine, defect," he hissed, narrowing his eyes just as the other was, showing how close he was to snapping. And just a more couple people to do it, when Yori and Ron joined in the barbs.

"Your father brought great shame to your family," the female ninja seethed, "but I am moreso ashamed that you are much worse."

"Yeah, seriously, dude," Ron said furiously, "you really are going way too far with this. I mean, I know I didn't like Monty then -" His eyes were locked with the other's, a small smile playing on his mouth before it was gone in a flash. "- but if you think it's cool to go and kill him, then it's blood on your hands, man! That is so wrong!"

"Yeah!" Rufus leaped onto his master's shoulder and raised his fists up, ready to fight - as they all were.

Monty, who had been watching the whole time, looked at them all with utter disbelief - but it was targeted at Ron most of all. He never thought he'd hear Ron say that he hated him once but no longer, and didn't know what to think or feel at the moment, but now was not the time, for Fukushima put the blood-stained knife somewhere into his gi and shouted furiously to his followers who had to be grown men... _his father's hands._

"Show no mercy on them," he said icily to them.

And now to assume the position. Kim's eye was on the target that was freeing her man on the slab, while the others distracted the hired hands - yeah, let's see what Ron could do against highly trained ninjas like these guys.

~o~

"Oh, Fuji..." was all Ron could get out at the sight of the number of enemy ninja with their _shuriken_ and _kunai_ at ready, and there were four of them - soon to be five if they ever get to Monty boy on time...

Just great. Big screw-up was coming on his part, and he knew it. Any slip and he put not only his life in jeopardy, but also KP, Hirotaka and Yori, as well as Fiske who was bleeding and shackled... "Rufus, little buddy," he whispered worriedly, and the naked mole rat jumped up then and whispered into his ear.

"Monty training," was all he said, and his brain clicked.

Of course! Monty's teachings and his wisdom which wasn't close enough to Master Sensei, but he...deep down, he'd been meaning to make him better, and it was time Ron repaid that back by forcing himself to the limits. He wasn't anywhere near Kim's level, or even the nobleman's, but he had to _do it._ Do it, not try. Now was not the time to make mistakes.

"Who's gonna lead?" he asked the other three who turned halfway to regard him.

Hirotaka stepped in with his knives in hand. "I'll do the honors."

He impressed them all by leaping first, followed by his fiancée and Kim, but Ron stayed where he was just for a moment, reaching behind him to grab his _bo_ , a less-lethal weapon which was just a very long staff made of wood. Once again: oh, Fuji. Why didn't he bring his more dangerous tools besides the _shuriken_ and _kunai_?! He wasn't sure if he could take those guys aimed at him...!

He saw Yori draw out her _Tessen_ and use it as a means to slash upwards at the ninja coming her way, before bringing it down to collide with his _kunai_ and jerking it out of his hand before bringing her fist up to give him a brutal punch to the face, dazing him. However, a counterattack from his part was coming from his foot, aiming for her midsection which Ron almost yelled out for, but she immediately spotted it and connected her foot with it, looping around and pulling him into her trap; once this was done, she threw him off his guard and had him on the ground, keeping him down while she fished her belt and sought out a fancy form of ninja handcuffs that he forgot the name of -

\- and behind her, another was coming her way. "AAAHHH, Yori look out!" he screeched. No one paid him attention yet as the focus was still on her, Hirotaka and Kim.

But then that changed altogether.

Rufus drew his own _bo_ and screeched as he jumped at another ninja who had drawn one sword he knew too well, called the _wakizashi_ which was shorter than the _katana_ and just as powerful. Ron screamed again and dodged the attack at the same time Rufus leaped and brought his stick onto the man's head. He groaned and fell forward, barely missing Ron who raised his stick and struck him right where it hurt the most - and don't bother asking him because it made him feel that pain mentally.

Hirotaka seemed to be handling it well with Yori, both having mastered a style called Mantis Kung Fu which was very swift and lightning in speed. He took her then and aided in swirling her towards another enemy ninja who was coming for them with his _kunai_ gleaming...

...but then KP leaped in and brought down her _bo_ , striking him out cold to the skull.

"Alright, KP!" Ron yelled happily, then looked down when he heard a moan. The ninja he and Rufus struck out was coming to, but the naked mole rat brought down his stick to clank him out again while Ron found himself brought back to the sound of the chained captive himself.

"Ronald, get me out of here!"

He flushed. Oh, man, how could he not find this opportunity to free him?! What could he do now? Kim was supposed to do this before, but why didn't she...?

~o~

"Looks like the time to fight on my part will have to wait at a better time," Fukushima hissed to him when he leaned down before retreating back into the shadows. This was in midst of the squabble taking place between his four allies against the five ninjas at this defect's command. He was being a coward hiding away whilst the rescuers themselves were distracted - but he must have his own reasons that hiding away was logical.

Monty, for the moment, believed it was to save his own skin and face him alone - at a time of his own choosing - and it would be just the two of them. His heart beat with the ideas that raced through his mind at how this culmination between them both could go any way...

Apparently, Kimberly was supposed to free him from these bonds, and he was irritated, but not at her; she, Yori, Hirotaka and Ronald were outmatched in that it was not her fault she would instead help her comrades. To see her beautiful, fierce straight strikes and behind-the-back attacks to watch the backs of Hirotaka and Yori - it set him aflame. All of them had the hang of the situation, but they had failed to grasp onto the most important of these warriors. Fukushima took advantage of escaping instead of staying and facing them like a real man, which gave Monty Fiske all the more reason to spite him other than his family history.

His wound stopped throbbing, the blood dried, but it still needed tending to. He pulled at his shackles once more just for the sake of it, and shouted over to the one whose style of _ninjutsu_ paled in comparison to the vixen whose tail he chased globalwide. Nevertheless, he reacted on time and took down the warrior with the help of his trusted naked mole rat - and it made Fiske think about his two loyal simians who were nowhere near his aid and should have been.

Why didn't Chippy and Mila come along? He was their master, for goodness' sake!

"Ronald," he yelled, "get me out of here!"

The young man hesitated for a moment, looking over the ninja knocked out by Rufus as if not knowing how he could help - and then his attention fell to the _wakizashi_ he'd dropped when boy and rodent overpowered him; overpower to the degree the buffoon managed. "Ah ha!" Ron said when he picked up the weapon, then let loose what was similar to a war cry and swirled himself in the air before bringing down the blade which sliced through the powerful steel without impressive difficulty. Both of Monty's wrists were free in less than a moment.

So, he was getting all the more stronger for his limited helpfulness. Something inside Monty was swelling as he allowed his feet to be freed in no time. "Ronald, you really are something!" he exclaimed as he joined in the last of the fight in which one ninja stood before him and Ronald - but leave that to the master.

Letting out his cry, Monty threw himself forward, bringing down his fist to collide with the man's face, and then another blow to the stomach. Once he was sure his opponent was in enough pain to not pull himself together, a sweep beneath the feet was in order. His body spun and lashed along with his leg which whipped outwards, his foot striking the other's groin and sending him flying into the wall on the other end. He fell to the harsh ground, unconscious. Panting, Monty looked down at him, satisfied and unaware of anything other than amazed eyes on him. All of those training sessions in _Tai Shing Pek Kwar_ had not gone to waste after all.

"Wow, not too shabby," Ron breathed, disbelieved.

His head whipped around to smirk at them all. "Who has mastered the art of Monkey Kung Fu, hm?" he asked slyly, sure he would not be talked down now. Hirotaka exhaled sharply and bowed his head.

"Montgomery, it was our honor to save you -" he started, but the Englishman didn't want to hear this.

"Now, don't use the honor speech with me now, old friend." He stood up from all fours and crossed over, surprising everyone - including Hirotaka, who could barely utter a word as he was embraced by the half-naked Lord Fiske. His ears picked up Kim unable to stifle a giggle, poor Ron swallowing as he didn't know what to make of what he was seeing, and Yori was sharing a laugh with Kim. "You did not have to feel obligated to save me, but I know you all well enough," Monty said when he broke it off, smiling from ear to ear. "I am grateful." He felt it all fade away when he found himself looking down at the fallen lackeys. "But he got away."

Kimberly's eyes widened before they narrowed to snake slits, and she slapped her fist into her palm, angered. "What do we do now? Listen to what Sensei wants now? I say we go after Fukushima," she declared.

"That is our primary objective," Yori agreed, "but we do not know where he could be now. Sensei's orders are to return to Yamanouchi at once - and we bring these ones at our feet with us."

Monty could not agree more, as he found himself looking down at himself, knowing he could not face their adversary like this. Kimberly followed his expression, sadness across her visage when she saw the terrible gash across his chest. She reached out and touched it as gently as she could. He sucked in a breath at her soft fingers caressing this new scar of his. And when they got back, her eyes also told him, she would be the one to bind up this wound. He smiled down at her, before a throat was cleared.

"Uh, does that hurt?" Ron asked. The rodent chattered worriedly. Monty allowed himself to smile down at them both.

"Not much at the present. You both have done well, and I thank you." Brown eyes lit up at the praise, making him chuckle.

~o~

When was the last time she was at a trial for the guilty?

In the past, when Kim apprehended Drakken, Shego and any of the others, she just left them for the authorities and then went back to her normal life - right after speaking to the authorities, of course. But because Monty wanted to be here, she felt she had to, and somehow this felt far more constricting to the heart and stomach than an American TV drama, or maybe a real court trial.

Because this school held onto so many old traditions, this trial of the five rogue ninja under the leadership of Shichiro, Fukushima's father, involved things the old-fashioned way. Evidence showed these men were all still loyal to their late leader and had gladly taken his son on because they believed that once he obtained mastery of the Mystical Monkey Power, he would "lead them to greatness" when this "tomb is falling apart from the glory days", and that they "always knew why Shichiro was the strong, clear-headed one to see the great picture." Kim closed her eyes and held Monty's hand behind their bodies.

Sensei stood before them all with the entire Yamanouchi school - and yes, the youngest students were included - gathered to watch the trial, and the most skilled guardians in black and in a good over-ten amount, ready to give out the punishment, which Kim knew was not going to be good or for the fainthearted.

Hirotaka was beside the master, Yori amongst the students she taught herself and looking somber as the rest. Hirotaka handed Sensei a bamboo staff, which Kim automatically assumed was a milder but still severe symbol to hand out the necessary punishment. Beginning with the first: "Masahiro..."

"Ooh, hope justice is really just," Ron whispered to her nervously, which she shushed him for. He bit his lower lip and flushed; the shining sweat broke out on his forehead.

"Gorou..."

By the sound of that name, it sounded too close to "gore" in English, only it couldn't mean that, right? It'd be ironic if it did.

"Tsuneo..." Monty grumbled but said nothing. If he really had something to say, then he held himself back at the last minute. His jaw was clenched so tautly that she was afraid his teeth would shatter.

And Sensei was just finishing. "...Osamu and Sadao - you have all been found guilty in league of the now rogue Fukushima, who was once one of our best and our own...now turned against us all because of his father's guilt. As per history of Shichiro's crimes, the five of you conspired with him to pollute our sanctuary and the Yamanouchi way of life, but were banished along with your master. And now you come back with a greater, more monstrous attempt. Fukushima is now a fugitive, and yet he has abandoned the lot of you to face our good justice."

She could practically count each thump of her thundering heart.

"Fukushima will be brought to us all and face us in the event of time, but the punishment you shall receive must befit your recent activities. Since banishment deep into the mountains has not sufficed and only built up the years of revenge up to this point, and for your former leader's son to befall to such treacherous levels, it seems that to have you anywhere on the mountain was most fatal. To execute all five of you will prove to be murder and spill blood on all of our hands. Instead, in the name of the honorable of all of Yamanouchi..."

~o~

The trial had not been wasted in a day, since Sensei wanted nothing more than to get these criminals away from his prized school as soon as possible. Fair was off the market today because he'd done this years ago, but look what happened: the past came back in a form to bite back at him. Monty did not remember feeling so disgusted the way he did earlier.

When the unconscious men recovered, they were bound and taken before the entire school where their sentence was declared - sentenced to honest labor in the local village - and everyone who had been a child or an elder present when Shichiro shamed himself and his family were there to bear witness. The lackeys were caught, but the master was yet to be found. He was impatient as it was, but alas, the time would come, and he would gladly stir himself up with more anticipation until then.

Just to taste sweet revenge for having his flesh cut and his pride dented.

It was by the next day during the late afternoon, and there was a chill in the air. Winter was approaching in less than two more weeks. He frowned when he realized how four days had come and gone so quickly. Time flew, it seemed...

Kimberly was removing the bandages from yesterday across his chest, being delicate even though he was not fragile. She chewed her bottom lip which he found too enticing and warned her about it; his threat only made her giggle and apply the herb-scented water to the healing wound. It was only a day old and was healing slowly; the first time she tended to it, he'd hissed at the little agony which made him feel like a child again when his mother bandaged his injuries and sometimes scolded him for climbing the trees so recklessly. Anne had called him her "little monkey", but did not wish to take him to the public hospital for obvious reasons.

"Oh, Monty," Kim breathed when she traced in the lines of his stomach, drawing a sigh from him at the sensations she stirred within him, "an entire life of adventure and preserving the monkey environment..."

He chuckled. "It's not the years, angel - it's the _mileage._ "

"Quoting Indiana Jones now, are we?" she teased, making him chuckle. She leaned up then and pecked him a kiss on the mouth which soon turned to a deeper one, but this did not arouse the flames. Not at this time of day and when they would be getting back to the others.

Ronald had improved so well in a short amount of time that it amazed him - but he still had ways to go. If he kept up the martial arts techniques, he might become a formidable fighter one day. The rodent fared better than his master, though, it seemed. When was the sight of Kim practicing ever gonna not rouse his love-and-lust concoction?

Besides this, he had been more than happy to be reunited with Chippy and Mila who had both missed him while he'd been captured. "The both of you," he'd breathed against them as he held them to his body, "I wish you were there so I could be made proud, seeing your training in action. But when we hunt for that traitor, the three of us will unite, and that chance will come." He'd sworn this to them by the healing scar on his body, and they'd looked worriedly at the marking, touching it for a split second before pulling their paws back out of fear of hurting their master. Their ooks were the answer in which they promised to not let him down.

Sensei called for him once again. Monty could only hope it regarded Fukushima...but it turned out to be something much better. Kim, Ron, Hirotaka and Yori were also with him. As were the monkeys and Rufus. Whatever this was, the old man had important reasons for this. He led them both to a bookcase in his study, reaching for an intricate statue of a god on the bookshelf...and then the entire case itself groaned and slid off to the right of the people gazing upon it. Monty was impressed, reminded of his secret dojo behind the fireplace.

Suddenly, his mind was on the buzz. Did this mean...?

"Uh, is it just me, or is this some sort of creepy 'secret room' situation?" Ron asked with a little gulp. Monty suppressed a snort and a chuckle in one.

Sensei's eyes twinkled. "Much more than that, Stoppable-san. Follow me."

Torches lit up as if by supernatural means when the group ventured down the flight of stairs which was similar to his own castle's secret compartment, but scrolls of ancient Asian times lined this one's corridor, and at the bottom of the case was a surprise that greeted them all...but most of all Lord Fiske himself. Master Sensei led them all to a previously unrevealed room of his own - a room only he himself knew about. Did Hirotaka, or Yori even? Looking at their faces, Monty found he could not read either of them, for once.

Kimberly and her friend were just as in awe. The monkeys whimpered in excitement and trepidation. But this reaction from all of them was not due to the room itself.

It was the fact it was the sacred spot of _all four jade monkeys_ in precise alignment in the room itself, surrounding a precise drawing of the mystical monkey on the floor in black amidst glowing yellow, outlined with bloody red. His heart burst like a water balloon as he knew now why Sensei brought them all down here, trusted them all now.

"Monty Fiske, my best and former student, in order to fight the one who betrayed us all...your destiny is now entrusted to be placed in your own hands."

 **YAY, NEXT CHAPTER IS WHEN IT ALL FINALLY HAPPENS. :D You all know what that is.**

 **Monty and Kim have such wonderful chemistry, as did Indiana and Marion in "Raiders of the Lost Ark", as you saw in the reference. It's a pleasure to be one who ships and writes for them, and to have fellows who share it with me.**

 **The scenes where Monty is rescued as well as the fight around him was based off of the one near the end of "The Mummy", but a much greater fight will soon take place. Stay tuned!**


	23. Unleash the Power

**The wait had better be worth it. :D**

 **Since everyone knows the original episode of Monkey Fist Strikes, we know that the differences between this time and that was he was so evil the first time around - but here he is conflicted, torn between just improving himself and using it to help others around him.**

Chapter Twenty-Three

Unleash the Power

"Sensei..." Kim said slowly. "...is this what I think it is?"

The old man looked her way without a blink. "Yes, Possible-chan. Lord Fiske, Fukushima is perhaps on his way back with a far greater, dangerous backup plan as we speak, and we do not have much time," he said when he turned his attention back to Monty, who could not take his eyes off the beautiful sight that he had waited for all his life...

 _It was finally going to happen._

"Oh, I don't know if I...like this," Ron said nervously, Rufus whimpering and jumping back into his master's pocket, sensing what was going to happen. "Monty, are you sure about this...?"

"Yes, Ron," he said impatiently, listening to his own heartbeat. "I've waited a long time for this."

Hirotaka's sigh was heavy and audible, rapturing attention from all eyes. "I feared this, Master Sensei. I tried to warn because of Kirayoshi all those centuries ago when Toshimiru himself passed on..." he said with a slump of the shoulders completely unlike himself.

How long were they going to have to go through with this? "Hirotaka, this is the last time I hear about insanity," Monty said sharply, finally turning around. "I swear that I will not turn into that man."

"You do not know that for sure, old friend," the other man replied coolly, locking eyes with him again. "Even Kirayoshi himself could not control it..."

Master Sensei then stepped up between them. "Gentlemen, my best students of the time, now is not the time to place fault based on centuries-old facts," he said firmly. "Our hands are no longer tied; Fiske-san, you must step into the circle and embrace your destiny."

The longer he continued to look at the sight before him - the aligned four corners each holding a monkey statue, the flames of the torches around dancing off the jade eyes to make them appear like green fire, circling the black simian symbol on the floor - the greater his blood boiled and his frustration grew. His feet twitched, the force pushing as hard as it would. Why was he hesitating when he waited a lifetime for this? His moment of glory and greatest weapon and gift was right here in front of him, yet...

He looked down to see Chippy and Mila around him, both hugging onto his legs and ooking worriedly despite their impressive surroundings. The air was thick with apprehension. Smiling, he knelt down and embraced them both before looking back up at Sensei, the question on his mind returning to him. "Master, why did they not come to my rescue when I needed them?" he asked, raising both eyebrows.

The old master canted his head forward. "They had to be protected, because they will share your purpose coming," he answered.

Yori looked stunned. "Sensei, two monkeys having the power? I do not wish to question you, but is it truly wise?" she asked, mirroring Fiske's own thoughts as he found himself looking down into the faces of his little companions, both looking at him with tooth-baring grins that made his insides shrink. This was supposed to be him and him alone, and even though he trained them well, he was not sure if -

"I agree with her," he said softly. "I trust these two with my life. Why do you believe -"

"They are your comrades, Fiske-san. I foresee a noble warrior needs loyal hands at his side," the man answered calmly. "You do not object that they shall follow you wherever you will go and lay down their lives on the line for you."

His cheek burned with a sliver of fire. He knew what this meant; he was crying because of the knowledge these two would always have his back until the end. He found himself looking at the others. Yori's smile was soft but twitching with uncertainty, almost to match Hirotaka's somber and eventually closed eyes, unable to look in utter defeat. As for the other two...

Ron was no longer quivering, but he was no doubt worried and could not imagine what would happen if he stepped into that circle. When Monty found himself locking eyes with those of the woman he loved, he saw the trepidation in there, too, because she had every reason to fear this moment which had finally arrived. She told him that she did not want him falling down the abyss, stayed with him the whole time when she could have run away or turn him in to the asylum - but here she was, and that look in her eyes had not changed at all.

But they were here now, so there was no going back. "I'll go first," Monty said, standing from his kneeling position and wasted no time leaping over to the middle of the circle and assuming the crouching on all fours, looking ahead at the one statue on the pedestal facing him square.

He did not need to look at the others to see if the same thing was happening: the eyes glowed, but not from the dancing fire on the walls. Was it his imagination, or did he hear the screeches of monkeys that did not come from the other two outside this circle?

Golden light flashed before his eyes, followed by the feel of gravity shifting beneath him. Gasps from the others told him something extraordinary was happening, and it _was_. His body underwent a sensation that he never felt in his life, which he found just as stimulating as being with Kimberly; not to mention, the surges were just the same. Electrical charges through his veins, turning his life's blood into molten lava, going to and back from his heart and making way for his brain. His vision brightened with the euphoric energy that lifted him off his feet and enlightened him with more power than he ever dreamed of!

However, in midst of his explosion of pleasure and enhancement, a thought quickly blinked in his mind.

He had been warned the power would change a man altogether - but why did he not feel any different mentally? It was only his _body_ that thrived.

The voices exclaimed in his ears over the energy that reached his senses:

"Is this supposed to happen?" That was Kimberly.

"It is...the power of the Mystical Monkey." Sensei.

And of course, Ron. "Whoa, super cool!"

"Booyah!" The naked mole rat was joined with the excited screeching of Chippy and Mila at the sight of their master in the air.

Was it Monty's imagination, or was this enough to close off all doubts they had? It did not matter now, because to FEEL it all made him roar like the monkey he was to the high heavens. Triumphant and exalted - the world beneath his feet.

He found himself before them all again, on his feet and laughing so loud it echoed in his own drums. His body wracked with excitement. This was beyond his expectations, and who could ask for anything like this? He found himself looking above and beyond the group gathered, and it was then and there that he felt his throat tighten at the figure he might have envisioned in his mind, because there was no way his allies could see... _her_.

It was his mother, Anne.

He bit back his tongue on breathing the word - _Mother_ \- lest he aroused the word insane on their minds. But when he saw the expression on her face, he was baffled. She was smiling, but within the depths of her dark eyes, there was a dullness which could mean one thing:

 _Despair._

~o~

She'd just...she'd just...her mind was on the fritz at what she saw. Her body trembled inside just seeing her Monty in the air...surrounded by golden light that did not come from any of the torches or any electrical sources which actually did not exist within these walls or on land...

Coming from _all four jade monkeys._

She did not know if she actually spoke or not. It was like she was having an out-of-body experience. "Is this supposed to happen?" she cried to Master Sensei who calmly responded.

"It is...the power of the Mystical Monkey," he said, reaching over to briefly lay his hand on her shoulder, but it was far from reassuring. It was nothing more than an uncomfortable surge throughout her body. Even the reactions from Ron, Rufus and the monkeys didn't help.

And neither did Monty's.

The cries of exhilaration as well as the expression gave off the idea that this must be a better than sex experience for him, the imagery and idea in one causing her stomach to lurch. Was this how his mother felt when she locked away all traces of the evidence his entire life? Was the magic really _changing him...?_

She clenched her hands into fists at both sides of herself, gritting her teeth and wishing she could do something about this, when she knew deep down that it was impossible. Kim wasn't sure if she liked this side of him, especially after everything. When he finally landed on all fours, still laughing more like a monkey than a man when he finally got what he wanted, he looked up at them all with a gleam in his eyes that she was so close to calling out mentally unstable light...but then his expression and demeanor changed altogether.

Yori was the one to step forth by one. "Fiske-san?" she asked softly, seeing the look on his face. He looked like he was seeing a ghost; his body had become rigid. What was going on through his mind? That question seemed to match the faces of Ron, Hirotaka and the animals.

He didn't answer, only continued to look ahead before lowering his eyes to the floor. His breathing was now coming pants as though in the aftermath of an orgasm, only this couldn't be positive now that the bliss was over. Reality would kick in the event of time. "Monty?" Kim asked, slowly walking his way until she was directly in front of him. "Are you all right?"

"Yes," he answered, finally looking at her. He tried to smile but only managed halfway. "I feel so complete, after a lifetime..."

Ron sputtered. "Dude, what does this make you now? Superhuman and throwing all the punches you want?" He whistled. "KP, he could be our partner on missions in the future? We could use a super -" He was cut off by Monty's impatient growl.

"Ronald, now is not the time for childish jokes."

It might sound funny to someone else, but now that the seed was planted in Kim's mind, she thought maybe it WAS a genius idea thanks to Ron. She knew it with all her heart. Monty Fiske was a man who could do anything. He was a hero like Kim Possible; he could do anything, and even more now that he had her at his side. She looked at him, at his strong face resembling carved marble; his eyes were frozen like ice as they narrowed on Ron who did not back down.

Then Hirotaka broke the brief tension. "My friend, are you any...different?" He was stoic, keeping himself under control because this was what he'd feared himself, what he'd warned the other man once he got this power - but it did not seem to be any different, mentally. Physically -

"Oh, I have never felt so alive," Monty answered, laughing and raising both his hands before dropping them to his sides. "I never felt anything like this...never dreamed of it..." His body wracked as if trying to hold back his emotions and was not doing a very good job of it. Kim quickly dove into his body, wrapping her arms around him, supporting him as he buried his face into her neck.

She held onto him as if for dear life. Physically, he was changed, but mental was safe. For now. If he got too much of this to his head...his lips on her neck snapped her from her thoughts. Sighing and forgetting the others around them, Kim pulled back a little distance and placed a kiss on his mouth, desperate and brief before letting him go, looking into his eyes, filled with so much fire and ferocity, so much passion and vitality...so much life. He had stepped into the circle and then obtained a great magical ability that enhanced his mastery of an ancient _ninjutsu_ another was coming back for. But she was not leaving him to face that evil other alone, and they had their friends behind them.

It was interrupted then by the old master himself.

"What will you use the power for - personal gain or protect those you love?"

~o~

 _"What will you use the power for - personal gain or protect those you love?"_

He felt as though his head was spinning as he tried to search for the answer and found nothing. He looked down at the floor, but even that did not help. Turning his back to the others didn't either, nor did looking at the circle of the four monkey idols with their darkening eyes as the magic retreated back into their cores to rest.

Monty never expected to be asked that question, and now that Sensei did ask this of him, the seed was stuck and planted, slowly growing within. It frightened him immensely as nothing was clear anymore.

Even Sensei's words didn't lessen it. "You need not answer me now, Montgomery-san, but know this: use the power to protect those you love and those who look up to you, and search to ease the conflict within you." And with that, he dismissed everyone from these walls back to the level above, back to their separate ways. But even as he chose to walk with Kimberly and made way for the hidden spring area which was currently unoccupied save for the exterior supervisors, his heart was thundering with too much of what Sensei stated: conflict.

He saw it all in Kim's eyes, neither of them speaking a word to each other. The conflict was there, as well as the old worry. "I don't feel any different, my dear," he told her finally, turning his back to her as he began to disrobe. "Only my body, but not my mind."

"That's not what I'm worried about anymore."

"Oh, then what?"

There was a rustling of clothing which told him she was undressing now. "What will you use it for after you beat Fukushima?" she questioned. "You're still the same man I met and know even better now, but what if it grows on you...?" She was implying that he would come to enjoy this power too much he would get too carried away, which could mean a myriad of things. He was thinking about one thing for sure: when he got back to his life, he would be there more times than prior to save every endangered species of simian so they would survive even after humans' times were done for. He would survive every trap he would come across in a new discovered dig in the future...

He turned to look at her then, seeing her smile along with the rest of her body in the soft mist consuming them. "You do this," she said when he told her everything, "and make sure you never change." She crossed up to him then and there, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I don't know if I'll ever get used to a whole new Monty Fiske that isn't the one I know now."

Monty sighed and melted into her embrace which was enhanced by the steaming mist. Never let the power get to him...just how difficult did that feel? Mind and heart were clashing instead of harmonizing in agreement once again. He tried to swear that it never would.

"Just how long do you think we'll have the time to ourselves?" Kim asked huskily, taking his bottom lip between her teeth and gently biting, making him growl at the stir in his stomach.

Chuckling, he brought his hands to grasp her hips and pull her close. "Enough," he said simply before they took the dip into the spring.

If he had one word, or one sentence, or even an entire phrase to describe what transpired, it could not be simply heated lust and desire; it was both of them mixed with love, the sweetest and most important than the basics that only satisfied you temporarily with a vengeance before reality struck you with a bigger blow. This took its time and swept them both out of the air to the heavens along with the steam that crept out the cracked windows while much of it remained to cloud their senses and reason. Naked, wet flesh collided above and below the water from every section: from the edge of the spot in which they took turns taking the leading rein to the middle of the source and floating with the waves, rocking them both back and forth until the climax erupted like a volcano beneath the ocean.

Kim was exhaling and trying to catch her breath with him as they both climbed out of the spring, exhausted to their bones. Since when did they both put so much energy into this? On Monty's part, it must be the Mystical Monkey Power enhancing the animal side of him.

"I could probably go to sleep now after that," she said with a breathy laugh, ringing her hair out. The auburn strands glistened like a twisted rope in the rain. "You think we'll be in trouble for this if they miss us?"

Well, they were only guests and not full-time students or staff members. "I believe that we can be accommodated to extend the afternoon to the rest of the day for us," Monty purred, nuzzling her neck after pulling his tunic on, but didn't close it yet. She was just getting her clothes back on last because she sustained more wet "damages" to her hair out of the rest of her body. He chuckled as he watched before focusing his attention on fastening the sash of his gi together.

It was then and there that their perfect moment, serene bliss and everything related was crashed then and there - an unexpected rumble shook them off their feet and back into the spring, getting them all wet once again. But it was no time for laughs.

Something - or _someone_ \- was attacking the school.

He and Kimberly were coughing and spitting water by the time they got out of the pool, soaked head to foot once more. "Jesus, what the hell was that?!" she exclaimed, before her expression changed altogether to realization along with a gasp. One name escaped their lips altogether in unison.

"Fukushima!"

Of course it was him! But how...how could he have caused such a quake over the entire area? They were running out of the tranquil section and out in the midst of chaos: smoke arose in the air along with some flames, the protective walls surrounding the monastery crushed as if by brute supernatural force...which it was. Monty growled as he laid his eyes on the smoking figure in the middle of the parted crowd of black and white.

Oh, how the little traitor had fallen...and lower than the Monkey Man expected.

But _what_ had he DONE to himself?

Fukushima was just as he remembered, only the single peculiar thing about him was that he was surrounded by black vapor, wisping about him like they were truly one. Dark eyes flamed with fury and vengeance as everyone assumed the positions and longed to get into action; many of them were young and had yet to be involved in their first battle. Monty raged internally when his enemy extended a hand and, again by magical means, a young girl of about seventeen was pulled his way and grasped by the shirt, held up kicking and struggling in his grasp for all to see. He called out to the crowd.

"Montgomery Fiske, power-hungry outsider, and all your friends - come out if you don't want to sacrifice this one and allow the blood to stain your hands!"

He barely heard the words "Oh, dear God" escape his lips as he felt himself grow cold. That girl...she was but only a child. He couldn't...couldn't...let Fukushima...

A hand laid on his shoulder then. "Fiske-san, come with me," Sensei whispered in his ear, then pulled him backwards before the demon before them all could see him. Kim looked at him with glowing eyes filled with determination.

"I'll take care of him," she promised, leaning up quickly to kiss him on the lips. But then she frowned. "Sensei, what do you -?"

He held up a hand. "No time to explain, Possible-chan. Just divert him from harming anyone until we return. And Fiske-san, my former student, you need your rightful weapon."

There was only one weapon that the Ultimate Monkey Master would wield, but he did not allow his excitement to show because it was inappropriate for a ninja to let his emotions get the best of him. "I'm ready for it, Master," he breathed, poised and emotionless on the outside, following him deep into the temple until they reached the very place where the Lotus Blade gleamed with the power of centuries and strength. When he reached for it by the ebony handle and held it before his eyes, a thrum of energy coursed through his system and set his cells on fire.

The ultimate Mystical Monkey weapon was in his hands, ready to slay the other who dared to attack his ancestor's own school that he brought to life from this mountain using THIS.

"You must go out now and face your opponent."

"And I shall, Master Sensei," Monty said, bowing with the sword still in his hands, before he turned and ran out of the temple, not bothering to wait for the old man...but when he did, a scene of unbridled horror was bestowed before his eyes and the ninja around him.

Fukushima was so powerful now that he'd taken down so many in staff and students alike. From his estimated in the student body, there were only three injured - including the girl who had been threatened before - and one dead; as for the staff, four dead and two wounded. But only one stood out from the mess, and the very latest in Fukushima's hands, crying out but not breaking down like a helpless victim. Monty had to bite back a shout of his own when he saw his beloved Kim Possible held by the throat unlike the one before her. He half-expected her to yell at him to run, but it was a waste of words and they both knew it.

And the man who held her fate in the palm of his hand knew that, seeing the glance exchanged between the lovers. "Yeah, lovers. One sees the other held within my grasp - and it makes me sick," he spat. "Kim Possible, the one who can do anything...but not for long." And what he did next was what he never thought he would see happen, nor did he expect it would be the woman he was bound in body and soul to.

He hardly heard himself roar out, knowing it would be futile.

Blood sprayed in the air and splashed onto the earth.

 **Next chapter will be the grand finale, so I'm so excited to bring the story to an end - yet I'm also sad, but we all know that all good stories must come to an end. And happy Thanksgiving. :D**


	24. Joy of Man's Desiring

**Nothing much to say, except that reviews are a thousand times appreciated for this fantastic retelling I do not regret in the slightest. :D**

 **Named after a classic spiritual song called "Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring", the version being by Celtic Woman, none other. :') There are a couple of elements of Naruto that inspired me to bring into here that you may recognize, so enjoy.**

Chapter Twenty-Four

Joy of Man's Desiring

 _"Kim Possible, the one who can do anything...but not for long..."_

Little did she know what would follow, even though she dealt with this kind of pain before - but not with the brute force he delivered to her chest followed before - and it was the most horrid feeling ever.

Her vision burst along with a slightly ruptured dent in her sternum, having enough medical expertise to know Fukushima struck an important part, but he didn't seem to plan to kill her, only hurt her enough to get his opponent before him riled up, causing her to worry for Monty more than herself. However, the agony that exploded throughout the rest of her body, from bones to muscles and blood vessels, et cetera, she gasped sharply as she could not even scream because her lungs constricted from the impact.

She did hear Monty's raging roar mixed with Fukushima's cruel laughter; Kim soon found herself thrown forward, sliding across the earth and coughing up blood before her world turned fuzzy and blackened. The last thing she heard for sure was Monty crying her name as she lay on her stomach, throbbing and numb, bleeding out the mouth, and lost consciousness.

~o~

"Admiring my handiwork, are you, outsider?"

He snarled with all the vengeance of a male animal losing his mate or even a child at that, and whipped his head upwards at the man responsible for this monstrous attack on his heart, as well as hers. Kimberly was bleeding out her mouth, and she'd just lost consciousness. Gritting his teeth, Monty reached down to place two fingers on her neck where he felt her pulse still throbbing. She was still alive, but she needed medical attention now.

"You will pay for this."

"Oh, I like to see you try," the demon sneered back, waving his hand. "What a pathetic beast you are, giving yourself to such foolish emotions that I could never because of my family name. Love is a weakness from where I am standing. I'm the strongest here - you are absolutely nothing, and now the world will see this." That hand waved back and forth, gesturing to the other Yamanouchi watching them all.

There he goes again, pushing Monty Fiske's buttons the wrong way again, and this time he went too far. Standing up, he paid no heed to Hirotaka diving beside him along with Ronald and Rufus, the latter two exclaiming in horror at the sight of their fallen comrade. But then the rodent leaped from his master's shoulder and onto Monty's, getting his attention and guiding it back to Kimberly, now in Hirotaka's arms and exhaling sharply in her state to let him know she was still alive, for now, since he last checked her pulse.

The sight of the blood lingering down her chin, the flow stopping now, caused his own to sizzle and bubble like magma rising from the earth's core.

He turned his attention from Fukushima, who was angrily but patiently waiting, and found himself taking her hand. Somehow, at the feeling, she was brought back to awareness and blinked tiredly, looking up at him. "Monty," she managed, smiling weakly.

"Save your strength, Kim Possible," Hirotaka urged.

"Yeah, KP," Ron agreed, reaching down to take her other hand, also forgetting they had an enemy behind them - and a very impatient but obliging one at that. "Don't talk too much. We're gonna take that guy down for you, aren't we, Monty?" His teeth were bared like a buck's that it made him bite back a chuckle. His stamina and determination, courage? It was enough to earn his respect and agreement.

"Yes, Kimberly - we will fight to our last breath." The Lotus Blade was safely behind him in its holding, but its energy stirred with the need to make contact with the body of the other behind them all. He leaned down to place a kiss on the back of her hand.

But she wasn't finished. "I never got the chance to take him for you," she said with a tinge of regret in her voice.

"You have nothing to be sorry for," Monty tried to assure her.

"You once told me a gentleman never lets a lady go alone. Now you should know that a woman should always fight beside the man she loves." And her eyes told him that once this was over, he was going to be with her in the future when she would go back to saving the world. He inhaled through his nose. If she wanted him, then he would have her when he would be back in his own world.

Promises made, he allowed his cherished friend to take her away to be treated immediately, but now he and Ronald were alone with Fukushima, and the other students and warriors were still watching them, apparently knowing this was their fight with this one who used to be one of them - and had betrayed them all.

A glimmer of red at his feet caught his attention. Seething, Monty knelt down whilst returning his gaze back to Fukushima and reached down with one hand while his other went to the hilt of the Lotus Blade. This was nothing to be taken lightly; once you made this vow, you could never go back on it. The skin of his palm tingled with the cool wetness of Kimberly's blood, the ruby a stark contrast against pale flesh, as he dipped his fingers and the top of his palm into the fluids slowly sinking into the earth. He held it up for all to see and called out indignantly.

"I promise to the one I love that you will not be spared of my wrath." He curled his fingers inwards, forming a fist that he brought to rest against his heart. "At this moment, I am not Lord Monty Fiske, the one you call a foreign outsider...I am _Monkey Fist."_

 _Monkey Fist...Tai Shing Pek Kwar_ translated to mean just that, though it was really "monkey axe-hand", close enough. And to know it sounded so similar to his own name. He never thought to call himself anything else other than the one he was christened with at birth, but now things had changed. He changed internally for the moment, but there was no telling if this would extend beyond today.

Primates were known to protect those they loved, attacked the one who threatened their loved ones or even took them away - and now Fukushima would pay for just that.

" _Monkey Fist_? Oh, now you name yourself after the art you mastered," the younger one stated plainly. "That's a laugh, ironic as it all is."

Ron snapped and took his place beside Monty, baring his teeth. "Don't you be dissing my partner, dude-san!" he spat. "You know what they say: you mess with one of us, you mess with ALL of us!" Rufus jumped up and cheered before blowing his tongue out, and that was it for all of them. They stood and talked long enough; it was time to fight.

Monty grasped the Lotus Blade and drew it, flashing it in the sunlight. The sword was wildly illuminated with the power of the sun; it was like Amaterasu, the goddess, was blessing it, and he could use it. Ron's jaw slackened at the sight before he returned his growling attention back to Fukushima who still could not keep his mouth shut.

"Knowing full well I will beat you, Monkey Fist, that sword will be mine."

Kimberly's words came to light that his lips let them slip. "That's going to happen - never!" he declared, brandishing the sword before his being, below his stomach. "I will not waste time testing it and instead go right for the immediate kill..."

And with that great shout of his, he whirled forward and slashed the blade out, but then he was greeted with a surprise from the even more powerful Fukushima surrounded with his shadowy mist.

Ron was screaming out, but he paid no attention to what the younger man was saying exactly when he found himself enveloped in shadow and smoke, his vision blocked so he had no idea what was happening. If Fukushima planned to counteract and kill him this way with whatever was up his sleeve...

Seconds felt like seconds when he found himself on the earth, with the blade still in his grip. He lay on his stomach, looking up at his now-clear surroundings. The school lay behind him now, several yards away, and surrounded with nature. He snarled when he looked up at the other man in black with his own weapon being smoke and abnormal physical strength. "Impressive," Monty stated, getting to his feet, "but cheap smoke tricks are no match for _Tai Shing Pek Kwar_."

"You really think that this is just something in which I simply step into a circle and acquire?" Fukushima sneered. "No, it was more than that. Something that my father had hidden but entrusted his friends to save for me if I ever needed help."

Standing, Monty assumed the position, not dreaming of lowering his guard - but his interest was piqued. "And what, pray tell, did your lecherous father leave you this time?" he spat.

Fukushima answered smoothly. "Oh, a very rare one. You're an archaeologist, so I think this would be up your alley, as it had been in your parents'. Are you familiar with the Kage Scroll?"

 _The Shadow Scroll..._

"No need to answer. I can see the look on your face." Yes, Lord Fiske read about it in the archives, though there was no true evidence or even an artifact of the mystical Shadow Scroll, the Japanese word being "kage". Containing various incantations and spiritual contacts, this particular piece of Japanese culture was considered to be very dangerous that it had been well-hidden, but no one ever knew who, but they knew why, and it was what Fukushima continued with. "It has its reasons for being rare and never found; even most were too scared, but not my father or myself now. No time to explain because we both know that elaborate education is done for. Father had the secret location, even a map to it, but only to use it as a last resort, and I have honored that resort. Not even Sensei himself knew about this.

"And to keep it brief, once more," he finished with both hands raised, smoke forces pouring out from his palms, "the Shadow Spirit itself has blessed me with what you have witnessed."

Outraged, Monty pieced it all together: he'd sold his soul and became a literal form of his own shadow - a living dark side. "Oh, you young, ambitious fool...you're no longer human!" he raged. "You are a DEMON!"

"More than human, Fiske... _myself._ "

Himself...that could be interpreted in many forms. Monty Fiske was more himself than he could remember in his life, but to sink as low as this one?! He was without honor and wisdom! He nearly killed the woman he loved, wounded and murdered others of his own, and here they stood one-on-one. "And so am I," Monty said, curling his lips. And with that, he drew the Lotus Blade again and threw himself at Fukushima again, springing in his leaps.

"COME AND FIGHT ME LIKE A MAN, FUKUSHIMA!"

The Lotus Blade was no ordinary sword; the Mystical Monkey Power could unleash a rare ability that you never expected. Just as he imagined, the thought rose in his mind that he should turn the sword into something stronger to serve the benefit. The blade itself was very powerful, but it appeared so delicate that it should be transformed into something more brute to block the attack - and yes! Just as Fukushima withdrew a shadowy sword of his own from the confides of his gi, smoking along with his being, Monty envisioned a _naginata_ , which was a classic samurai feudal pole-arm which women of those times often used - however, slower in use and varied in size to accommodate man or woman.

Despite however sluggish the motion and weight, he was able to clash against his opponent first by bringing the long pole at the end underneath and striking the other where it hurt the most - his manhood. Which lessened his stone-cold dignity and caused him to double over before he ultimately regained his composure - with incredible speed and superhuman abnormality, but Monkey Kung Fu surpassed only if you believed it would, and that was what Monty Fiske was doing.

He believed he could beat this Shadow Fukushima.

~o~

Okay, what he saw: Fukushima wrapped Monty and the Lotus Blade up in smoke and took him away - sick and wrong! Was Ron Stoppable the only one now to step in and help him?!

Kim was in the healing room being treated, so he had no choice in the matter but to follow them. "Rufus, we're on," he started, only to be startled by a series of frantic screeches, none other than the monkeys. "Oh, you guys are coming, too!" he agreed, knowing that they could not leave their master behind. They might end up getting killed, but at least they died for a heroic cause.

"Stoppable-san, not without your weapons," Yori reminded him when she handed him his _bo, katana_ and everything else to his belt. He was ready to go...and that was when everyone noticed how the monkeys seemed more...excited in their leaps and parries in agreement. But before Ron could open his mouth, Sensei was there.

"They have stepped into the circle. They will now join their master in battle."

"Well, no time to waste; let's go!"

No time to admire the scenery, no time to stop and rest, for it was not that far away when they all finally arrived and stopped in their tracks, watching in shock as the battle went on between Monkey Man and Shadow Man.

Ron wanted to yell out, but that would only distract Monty and therefore place him at the mercy of a killing blow. He wanted to know what Fukushima had done to himself, but one thing was for sure: ancient forbidden magic.

For awhile, they parried and dodged attacks with their different blades - smoke-emitting steel against gleaming silver. Soaring in the air and landing to clash again. To jump from tree to tree, allowing himself to be chased - this was part of Monty's game now - but with his weapon in hand. Monty so far had the upper hand, so that was good. Master of the Mystical Monkey Power could do anything, right?

It was then and there that Fukushima started to gain up on Monty, who was just leaping out of the trees and was about to whirl around and deliver the latest blow from the Lotus Blade - now transformed into this sword-pole thing whose name Ron had forgotten but remembered it was used in feudal times - to the one who almost killed KP, but from what Ron saw with Rufus and the monkeys, Fukushima had transformed himself into a shadow and shrunk away so that Monty lost track of him.

He swallowed that horrible lump in his throat, before he forced himself to yell just as the ninja lord leaped from the trees whilst continuing his search. At the same time, the grim puff of smoke arose from the earth and formed the shape of a human. "Monty, behind you!" Ron yelled out just as the other man whirled around only to be struck and thrown off his feet, towards the small group and onto his back. Oh, no, the Lotus Blade reverted back to its original state in a flash and stabbed the earth some feet away from them!

"Uh, oh!" Rufus cried, jumping into his pocket. The monkeys screeched and threw themselves at Fukushima, but he growled and struck them all in a single blow, sending them all to the side and hitting the trees...and a sickening crack was heard from one of them. Watching with the same mortification etched in Monty's features, one of the monkeys - the _female_ \- fell limply and lay there.

Dead.

"NOOOOOOO! _MILA_!"

Ron's heart was gut-wrenched at the sight of Chippy picking himself up and throwing himself onto his dead mate, howling in grief and heartbreak. The same kind of heartbreak Kim would bestow if she found out the man she loved so much was killed now, for Fukushima was advancing on the fallen Monkey Man now - but oh, not on Ron Stoppable's watch. Not if he had anything to say about this. That left one thing left to do, and he was not afraid. He would do this for Kim and Monty, for Yamanouchi, and everyone in the world.

He allowed himself to stand in front of his fallen partner as the shadowy blade pierced his side.

~o~

First Mila - and now Ron!

His wondrous little friends risked their tails and their lives to defend him, and he ended up losing one of them in the process. He saw it all happen with his own two eyes. To lose Chippy's mate struck his heart worse than an arrow or any lethal weapon - including the one that would have reached him - and even more when Ronald Stoppable stepped in and took the blow for him to his side.

Fukushima snarled and shoved the blond off. "Get off my blade!"

Monty caught him in his embrace. The stabbing wasn't fatal, but he needed medical attention soon. "Ron!" he cried, keeping him close. Rufus leaped out of the pocket and shrieked, jumping onto his master's lap and crying into his tunic. "Why - WHY did you get in the way?"

Ron's brown eyes looked up and shone with his smile. "Because it wouldn't be right to let you die before Kim saw you again," he answered, no breath halted. It amazed the Englishman how strong he was.

He...Ron took the blow just for him and Kimberly...

His mind and sanity were screaming that Ron should never have done this, risk his own life like this. What about his woman back in Middleton, his partnership with Kim - and their rivalry would have been the last thing on his mind if he died, never mind the fact they had somehow grown closer...

A scoff brought his attention back to Fukushima who was raising his weapon again. "That's what he gets for getting in the way."

Monty was about to retort when a ferocious screech sounded as well as a buzz of brown flew before his eyes, and Chippy was attacking Fukushima, knocking out his weapon and tackling him to the ground. That was for what the demon did to his mate, so now the monkey knew what his master felt for his own. It was also this opportunity that Monty grasped when he gently set Ron down, who was clutching at his side with help from Rufus, and Fiske dove to grab the Lotus Blade, barking at Chippy to stay back so he could finish him off himself.

The first thing he did was just to deliver a warning slash to the other's face, leaving a gash on Fukushima's cheek. He howled in pain and clutched at his cheek. He was subdued temporarily; now his rival held the weapon while he was laying on the ground unarmed. Finally, to finish this off.

"This is for the beloved school and comrades you betrayed," Monty Fiske growled, "and for my Kimberly. And now you will answer to your ancestor before he sends you to hell..."

However, just as he raised the shining blade, the voice of Sensei sounded in his ears. His former master was speaking to him telepathically so. _Fiske-san, hold your weapon._

He was dismayed, hesitating only for a moment as he continued to glare down at his fallen enemy, who wore a petrified look on his face and glazing fear of death in his eyes, awaiting the inevitable. Monty wondered why Sensei didn't want him to murder this creature right here and right now; that was why he had the Lotus Blade, was it not? He was the wielder of the Mystical Monkey Power, and this sacred weapon unleashed it, so why couldn't he kill Fukushima here and now?

 _Take to heart my tale of how I avenged my beloved and would have fallen down the path Fukushima has taken, Montgomery Fiske - a path we have all feared you would succumb to. The Lotus Blade is made for combat and negotiation, and any other nobler use, but it is not for blood-stained murder. Fukushima has been defeated, and he knows it. The choice is yours to make, but don't allow more blood to be spilled...or for that blood to be on your hands._

His own blood froze in its channels. Sensei was telling him to NOT kill Fukushima - what was he thinking?! Fukushima was too dangerous to be kept alive, but the story of the younger master and his murdered beloved lingered on his mind...Kimberly had almost been killed by this one, and here he, Lord Monty Fiske, was standing over him with the mystical sword of Toshimiru himself in his hands, ready to deliver the blow that would result in blood covering this blade. Was this what it was now: an ultimate test for how he would sue his newfound powers, whether or not he would spare or kill Fukushima with them?

Looking over at Ron, briefly, who was sitting upwards halfway and grimacing as he held his side with help from Chippy and Rufus; then at Mila's corpse a distance away, Monty's rage continued to bubble, but his heart didn't. It was thumping with a lightness that caused his body to quake in the muscles. His hands tightened around the sword's hilt, wishing he could just take the easy way and do him, his fallen partner behind him, his wounded beloved and all those who suffered and died as well as the ones who survived a big favor - but ultimately, he took the harder way and decided he would do the honorable act. He wasn't a murderer, and knowing Kim, she would say that even though Fukushima became a monster, he was still a human who would be justly dealt with. If he came back, then a second time would not be so merciful. Yes, that would do.

 _Choosing to spare his life proves you are wielding the Monkey Power honorably, my former pupil. You have made the decision wisely._

Monty took a few steps back then, rolling his shoulders whilst continuing to glare down at his enemy, who appeared baffled. The blade lowered before his being, ready if the other tried anything fancy. "Outsider, why won't you kill me?" Fukushima taunted.

"I will not," Monty answered simply, unblinking. "You are going to live because I will not allow any blood on my own hands, even though your death would do the world a favor - but you are still but a young boy. I refuse to take a child's life. But you will go back to the monastery and answer for what you have done, quickly and quietly. Try anything, and I shall be forced to drive this -" He held up the sword and not in a menacing manner. "- through your heart for sure."

He motioned Fukushima to stand then, keeping the weapon on him, and if he just needed anything to keep him subdued for the short journey back to the school, he envisioned a pair of American - or English? It didn't matter - style handcuffs and was about to order Fukushima to put his hands behind his back when the unthinkable happened.

"What's happening?!" the boy screamed when he held up his hands, which were fading, starting at the fingertips and turning into black ash, singed with fire, traveling north to cover his hands, his arms and the rest of his body. "NOOOO!" His eyes as well as his mouth erupted into flames, consuming him and erupting, forcing Monty to retreat back and stumble against the injured Ron and the animals.

By the time it was over, there was nothing left except lingering floating ash which faded along with the smoke. Fukushima had vanished without a trace, as if he never existed.

"Oh, wow," Ron gasped, then flinched as he was apparently wracked with some spiking in his side. Grunting, Monty helped him to his feet with the Lotus Blade tucked back behind him. Rufus was back in the pocket; behind them, Chippy hauled poor Mila's body onto his back and tagged after them. She would be taken back to England for a proper burial as soon as they were all away from here. "What just happened?"

Monty wet his lips, feeling the dry cracks forming. Everyone knew in every culture that striking a bargain with forces beyond your comprehension resulted in terrible consequences, and that was what happened to Fukushima. He was beaten, and he knew it as much as the Kage Spirit from the scroll knew it. When he lost, the spirit within him ate him up until there was nothing left, taking him to devil knew where. Wherever that blasted scroll was now, he wasn't sure, but after everything was settled with taking care of the dead and the wounded, he would gladly ask Sensei's permission to hunt it and perhaps destroy that thing once and for all - it was too dangerous to be kept in the museum, that much was clear. But for the moment, he relished a clear victory that turned out in their favor.

He'd passed the test of morals on this very day, and he had every reason to feel proud of himself.

~o~

She was in and out of consciousness when she was brought into the healing rooms, unaware of much other than the numbing pain, before she was brought back to awareness and in time to see Ron and Monty stumbling in accompanied by a couple healers, and she gasped at the state Ron was in now. He was holding his side, bleeding but not a lot, which surprised her. She gritted her teeth, thinking of Fukushima.

Speaking of which, they took care of him, didn't they?

"Possible-chan, you shall make a full recovery," Hirotaka told her when he knelt beside her, smiling before turning it in the direction of his childhood sparring partner who was doing a fine job of trying to cover his... _behind._ Kim swallowed, trying not to laugh as her chest still hurt a little. Did he...did Monty tear his pants in battle like Ron was known to do? He caught the way she was looking at him and only narrowed his eyes even though he was smiling. He was happy to see that she was alright, and she was glad he and Ron were, too.

"Yeah, KP, he got me," he told her when she asked of his injured side that the healers immediately got to. "But I've held out better than a horse so far, so booyah!" At least he was as cheery as ever that it made everyone in the room laugh.

Sensei chuckled. "Stoppable-san, despite taking a nearly fatal strike, you are merry as ever. I am impressed." His face fell. "But we have lost a small handful of lives today," he said with a twinge of grief in his voice that it made Kim's stomach drop as she, too, remembered the small number of people - students and staff - lost by Fukushima's hands. "But Fukushima, while he had been a good student in another life, has paid for the sins of his father as well as his own bleak actions against us all. We will all mourn the dedicated young soul he once was - but after today we will remember him as the one who wreaked havoc, pain and death upon this very school which his ancestor brought to life using the very sword that his true successor wielded to save us all."

It was then and there that he turned his attention back to Monty, who now had a white sheet wrapped around his waist. It looked very funny, but it preserved what he had exposed back there for the time being. But then she noticed, for the first time, the glaze in his eyes despite the victory won today. Something wrenched her chest as well as her guts as she had a terrible idea...

"Monty...what did he do?" she asked, careful not to speak too much or move as he came to kneel beside her. He bowed his head.

"Mila was killed," he said, and then a tear escaped as she tried not to cry, whispering she was sorry as well as heartbroken over the loss of one of his cherished monkey friends who had been with him since the time he rescued them long ago in Africa. "She's coming back with Chippy and I for a proper burial. I shall not leave her here on foreign soil far away from the ones who loved her." He was a good man at heart and always would be.

Her attention fell back to the sight of the white around his waist, contrasting with the black. The only time Monty saw Ron lose his pants was that very first day they met, back in Brazil - and now they were even. It made her laugh inside when it hurt to bring it out to the open.

How was it that she never felt the minor hollow in her gut before? Was it because that this was the first time she lost a few lives even if they were just strangers - strangers she loved to help? They were so young and didn't deserve what Fukushima brought on them, and poor little Mila didn't deserve to be taken from her mate or her grieving master like that. Ron had also nearly been put the same way as she nearly had been.

Looking into Monty's eyes, glazed with tears as they were, he had saved the day. Cupping his face, she brought him down for a kiss. They may have lost people - and animals - but they would be mourned and missed, never forgotten, and they themselves were all alive. Wasn't that all that mattered?

~o~

The next day after landing in London, Monty set up an appointment with his superior, not the least bit nervous despite Bates' worries.

"So, we're never going to get those statues back," Joanne Reeves stated plainly as she sat behind her desk, lips in a tight line as she observed Monty Fiske, who was impassive but respectful as he delivered her his report. He did not like this any more than she did, but it was all for the best.

"I'm regretting it, Joanne, but it was for the best, I suppose. I was so close to having all four jade monkeys for the museum...but it seems some priceless icons aren't meant to be," he said, putting up his saddest façade the best he could. Before departure, Sensei had spoken to him that he would keep the four jade monkeys locked away below the school for the time being until they would find other remote locations as to ensure they would NEVER be found for another thousand years, once his time was up. Whilst there would be men like him and Toshimiru before him, there would always be evils like Fukushima and Kirayoshi before him.

And the Kage Scroll? Sensei ordered it destroyed once and for all, and he had very good reasons because this was by no means safe like other ancient relics of the culture.

Taking off her glasses, Reeves sighed in disappointment. "I see. It's a great pity, my friend. We might be in trouble with the government for this...but for yourself and your mother's, rest her, some things are not meant to be as you said." He gave her a smile of understanding that she returned, before she turned her attention behind her and called for _Grace Leaven_ , who came out through the opened side entrance with a beam on her face.

"Why, Miss Leaven, what a pleasant surprise," Monty told her courteously. "What brings you here?"

"I was offered an internship here at the museum, Lord Fiske," she answered, her brown eyes shining with mirth - _just like Ronald._ "And I feel like I want to actually be just like you when I finish. I can't thank you enough for this far."

He was surprised when she told him she was advancing because of him, and something inside him swelled with pride. "It was an honor and a privilege having taught you, Miss Leaven."

Following the meeting, he was home at the castle, but the air was thick with mourning. He had been all in black for the entire day, mainly due to the fact that he did not feel like changing as soon as he returned home in time for the services in the castle grounds. Mila's resting place was beneath a tree shade, placed with a bouquet of white and peach roses with greenery and Queen Anne's lace that he'd bought from the flower shop only today. She did not need anything overtly fancy because this had to be as sweet and natural as she had been in life. Chippy was ooking and wailing over her gravestone, placing empty banana peels over it, making him and Bates chuckle.

"I know, we will all miss her," he murmured to Chippy when he placed the flowers beneath the epitaph: **Rest well, Mila, beloved mate and devoted follower - may your journey be a celestial one**

~o~

It was Christmas time that arrived when she and her family - including Ron bringing Tara along for a change, as his forbidden presence had at last been revoked by the master himself - arrived at Fiske Castle on Christmas Eve. According to Bates, this would be the first time the estate would have a beautiful Christmas celebration and bring life back into its master's life here. Kim could hardly contain her excitement.

She and Ron both made great recoveries, though in her case, the pain in her chest remained due to a slightly fractured bone, but in a few more weeks, it would be over, according to the doctor. On Ron's part, his side healed, and he was discharged immediately after surgery because it wasn't as serious, which was a miracle because between them both as well as Monty, it was supernatural to heal a little faster than average.

Speaking of their adventures, Kim had officially decided what her new book's adventures would be about, involving the identical-looking Iris as well as her dashing lover - a British gentleman named _Monty,_ no less - would be on. It would take maybe less than the time it took her to do _Kathryn's Journey_ , because this one was deep from the heart without further need to research and change a lot of things. However, Iris was more like her in a sense she was a college student but working for a degree in history until she was called for an internship on a dig involving a supposedly cursed monkey temple - and the man who commissioned her was none other than the adventurer she'd idolized since childhood and inspired her to become what she wanted to be. As it turned out, this "handsome, mysterious dark-haired man" ended up being the one she would fall in love with while they embarked on the adventure of their lives when the spirit of the temple was unleashed to take its wrath upon the world. Now, who did NOT love an epic romantic adventure like this one?

In more ways than one, it was like any other film or movie those people out there who would read this grew up with. But she would try her best to not make it too similar to anything else known, even though it was no surprise that no one could _naturally_ help it.

Besides the point, she thought this particular title best suited: _The Seekers_. That could be interpreted into the forms of seeking not only the adventure of the lifetime, but also another to fill the emptiness that you couldn't bear in your life any longer.

When she, Ron and the family arrived in the main hall of the castle, they were all greeted with a stunning surprise: greenery and lights were draped on the staircase, the windows frosted with handmade snow crystals, and lights were illuminating the cold stone walls with so much warmth that her skin was washed in it after the chill outside. Her parents, the tweebs, Nana as well as Ron and Tara were praising everything in a buzz that she didn't understand them individually, only concentrated on the man on the stairs whose attention raptured them all now.

The way Monty looked now surprised her. Yes, it wasn't new that he was in a collared shirt and fitted slacks, but his shirt was red this time to accommodate the holiday season, rolled up to the sleeves, and he wasn't wearing gloves any longer - except at work, he told her with a shy smile, because even though he grew comfortable with accepting his wild side to her, he still had more time to allow the world to be ready to know.

But if not, then the world was better off not knowing the truth about Lord Monty Fiske.

"Welcome to my castle," he said to the guests as he descended the stairs and nodded to Bates to lead them all down the hallway and in time to be in awe at the grand Christmas tree that had not been bestowed with its lustrous glory in ages. So much gold and silver, snow and some pops of blue - _his eyes._ Which were currently shining when he came to stand beside her, hooking his arm through hers and looking her over, taking in her shimmering golden dress with the bejeweled side, and the diamond locket around her neck which treasured his face. He smiled but said nothing. But why should he right now? Kim Possible thought that her chances of a happily ever after were too far-fetched - but it all changed when Lord Montgomery Fiske walked into her life.

He and Ron cordially greeted each other, but mostly as friends instead of enemies now, which lifted Kim's spirits as she knew things were going to be better from now on.

As the evening went on, and as the family socialized at the dinner table, Kim and Monty looked at each other with the silent remembrance of all their happy times and the harsh moments of their relationship and the possible future to come.

And speaking of which, Monty surprised everyone by standing from the head of the table and walking over to her, kneeling at her side, and she gasped when she saw what he pulled from his pocket and held in front of her, filled with so much confidence and pushing aside any fears he might have about this decision. Before her family and friends and on Christmas Eve of all days...and after the next eight months that passed, there were no regrets.

She had not since been able to get over this ring he gave her on that night, after only barely four months of knowing each other and having endured so much. The craftsmanship was majestic with the main solitaire attraction atop a band filled with an endless number of smaller ones, reflecting fire and never seeming to not grasp anyone's attention.

 _"Kimberly Ann Possible, you fill my life with countless adventure and passion that I never dreamed of in my lifetime. If you will have me, will you someday spend the rest of your life with me as my lady?"_

She just could not say no, and it wasn't a heat of the moment. This was the time she had waited forever for, too, and her father looked disgruntled but otherwise happy for her and liked Monty Fiske the moment they met. The hall erupted with tears of joy after the shared kiss and the placing of the ring on her finger.

Graduation followed six months afterwards, and she was planning to move out of Middleton and to live with him in England, where the university offered her a teaching position as professor of history and literature; she could not refuse the offer. Yet even though she'd left Middleton before, she never realized how much she was going to miss her old life here, being thousands of miles away from her family and friends, but it was not like she would lose contact EVER. And her new book sold well, even topping the last one in the bestseller's lists, which made her proud and had her fiancée sweeping her off her feet. Even though she never knew Anne Fiske and never would, she gladly intended to follow her example in keeping her independence whilst still making her husband happy - well, soon-to-be. And Monty had no complaints.

Kim felt like crying when she looked at herself in her wedding gown, which was simple but stunning, with rosettes down the front of the skirt. It was modern and traditional at the same time, billowing out and baring her shoulders and part of her chest. Her mother, Anne, could not stop tearing up herself as she and Monique helped with her hair and makeup. Fiery auburn locks were braided behind her head and accented with intricate jeweled flowers in vines. "My Kimmy," Anne whispered, kissing her cheek.

"Yeah, girl, and so great to be your maid of honor!" Monique, in strapless baby blue silk, chimed in as she handed her the jewelry set, which was delicate and based off upper-class British. The earrings were dainty drops like flowers and leaves, complete with a matching necklace and bracelet.

And with the floating, dramatic cathedral veil without any embellishment attached to her braided locks, the bride was ready to meet her groom in the Fiske Castle chapel where his parents had wed almost four decades ago.

Looking out a window, Kim saw the dark clouds and the pouring rain gliding across the window, and even _heard_ it from where she was standing. But it was all a good omen, and they were getting married indoors. Rain might be gloomy, but it also made things nurture and grow - even marriage. When she and her party finally reached the chapel, glimpsing the one hundred guests behind the aisle of flowers - white roses, lilies and draping ivy vines - amidst medieval arches, she could not keep herself together as she let her father take her up to the altar and give her to the man who was going to be her new husband. She kissed James Possible before handing Tara her bouquet and giving both hands to Monty, promising to be his until the day one of them died - or both of them together - and to never let anything come between them.

Her words brought tears to the eyes of those around her, and she saw, from Monty's side as the best man, Ron blew his nose along with Rufus, earning some laughter before it got serious again.

Looking into his eyes, she saw the same sincerity as he spoke his side of the vows, swearing that she was his forevermore until they parted in death. She was his lady and his equal in everything and in name. A tear fell down his cheek at the same time she felt hers, swallowing and taking the ring to place on his finger before allowing him to do the same for her.

The last words of _The Horseman's Bride_ returned to light, and befitted them so well that it was neither foolish or impossible: _They stood together on the threshold of a new life, surrounded by love._

 **So we end as we began, and with the line from the book Kim read early on in the tale. :')**

 **In determining how Fukushima has a counterattack - involving the Kage Scroll, or Shadow Scroll - it was my boyfriend's idea for the name as well as Blue Kitsune's description of having an ancient rare scroll in which Fukushima could use to make himself powerful...even if that means selling his soul in order to defeat his rival. And the blood oath Monty made with his beloved Kim's blood was inspired by Naruto doing the same with Hinata's spilled blood after Neji, her tormented cousin, def** **eated her in a duel. Love really did conquer all, as it goes in classic form. :D**

 **As always, no regrets, and thank you so much for enjoying this as I always have.**


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